Japan s Murata Manufacturing Co. Ltd s latest concept robots, the Murata Cheerleaders, demonstrate how they balance on balls and synchronise as a team by utilising sensing and communication technology, at CEATEC JAPAN 2016 at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan. CHIBA, JAPAN: A Japanese inventor is hoping a robot that still needs humans will win over Asia's largest tech fair, offering a counterpoint to major technology firms pushing the boundaries of artificial intelligence (AI). Katsumori Sakakibara was showing off his little droid called Caiba at the Cutting-Edge IT & Electronics Comprehensive Exhibition (CEATEC), which kicked off Tuesday near Tokyo. Waist-high Caiba -- whose name means hippocampus, a key area of the brain, in Japanese -- is controlled by a human wearing a virtual reality handset and mechanical arms. If the person waves their arms, the little robot follows suit.

A Japanese inventor is hoping a robot that still needs humans will win over Asia's largest tech fair, offering a counterpoint to major technology firms pushing the boundaries of artificial intelligence (AI). Katsumori Sakakibara was showing off his little droid called Caiba at the Cutting-Edge IT & Electronics Comprehensive Exhibition (CEATEC), which kicked off Tuesday near Tokyo. Waist-high Caiba--whose name means hippocampus, a key area of the brain, in Japanese--is controlled by a human wearing a virtual reality handset and mechanical arms. If the person waves their arms, the little robot follows suit. But whatever Caiba does, it depends on a human to control it.