A science fiction-inspired robot hardwired to assist astronauts will launch from Florida early Friday morning to become the first personal, artificial intelligence-powered companion in space. The Crew Interactive Mobile Companion, or CIMON, is an English-speaking droid roughly the size of a basketball that will help German astronaut Alexander Gerst conduct experiments on the International Space Station. "What we're trying to do with CIMON is to increase the efficiency of the astronaut," Matthias Biniok, an engineer for chip maker IBM and one of the lead architects behind CIMON's artificial intelligence, told Reuters. CIMON will verbally communicate step-by-step instructions to Gerst during three planned science experiments on the space station's European module. Currently, astronauts read these instructions from a laptop, which Biniok says is an arduous process that a responsive, hands-free companion like CIMON can replace.

CIMON will verbally communicate step-by-step instructions to Gerst during three planned science experiments on the space station's European module. Currently, astronauts read these instructions from a laptop, which Biniok says is an arduous process that a responsive, hands-free companion like CIMON can replace.