Sony's Pet Project, a New Robot Dog, to Be Unleashed Soon

Sony Chief Executive Kazuo Hirai said last year at a strategy briefing that the company was developing "a robot capable of forming an emotional bond with customers, and able to grow to inspire love and affection." He told The Wall Street Journal at the time that the company might make an Aibo-like dog robot. The Nikkei newspaper reported earlier this month that Sony was targeting spring 2018 for the release of a home robot. The robot project is one of Mr. Hirai's initiatives to show that innovation is alive at the Japanese electronics maker, which was known for a string of hits going back to the transistor radio in the 1950s but has more recently focused on shoring up profitability by shrinking its portfolio. More than 100 employees are involved in Sony's robotics projects, said people familiar with them.