Scientists try to teach a robot when it is appropriate to LAUGH

Robots are famously cold, hard and unfeeling, so they may not be the greatest audience for your favourite knock-knock joke. However, scientists in Japan are looking to change their reputation, by teaching them when and how to laugh using artificial intelligence (AI). The researchers created an android, named'Erica', which they trained to detect laughter in conversation, then decide whether to laugh in response and what kind of laughter would be best. Her conversations and chuckles were then watched by volunteers, who decided that her responses demonstrated empathy and human-likeness. Lead author Dr Koji Inoue, from Kyoto University, said: 'We think that one of the important functions of conversational AI is empathy.