Don't call him HAL... NASA reveals AI 'crew member' to blast off to the Space Station

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station are about to get an AI personal assistant. Known as CIMON (Crew Interactive MObile CompanioN) the bot, developed by Airbus, will use IBM's Watson AI technology to help astronauts. Researchers hope that with its face, voice and artificial intelligence, it will become a genuine'colleague' on board, helping astronauts with their daily routines, and warning of any impending problems - much like the HAL robot in Stanley Kubrick's 2001 was designed to do. Known as CIMON (Crew Interactive MObile CompanioN) the bot will use IBM's Watson technology to help astronauts. CIMON is designed to support astronauts in performing routine work, for example by displaying procedures or – thanks to its'neural' AI network and its ability to learn – offering solutions to problems.