ROBOTS could soon keep the elderly company

In the hopes of relieving building pressures in hospitals and care homes, researchers are developing'culturally aware' robots. The emotional machines could help care for the elderly, assisting them in taking their medications and offering them companionship. Researchers have been awarded £2 million ($2.5 million) in funding to develop the bots over the next three years. In the hopes of relieving building pressures in hospitals and care homes, researchers are developing'culturally aware' robots. Pepper went on sale to consumers in Japan in June 2015 and then enterprise customers, who pay for the bot on a three-year rental basis worth around $16,000 (£12,188.80),