In sci-fi films like Alien, humanoid robots are so lifelike that it's almost impossible to tell them from a real person. Now, scientists in Japan are on their way to creating real-life versions of these realistic machines. The experts from the University of Tokyo have created a robotic face out of lab-grown human skin. Creepy video shows the bizarre pink creation attempting a cheesy smile. According to the scientists, robots with real skin not only have an'increasingly lifelike appearance' but could heal themselves if damaged. In sci-fi films like Alien, humanoid robots are so realistic that it's almost impossible to tell them from a real human - at least until you see their innards.

If we want to live in a world where we interact with robots, they'll have to be able to read and respond to our facial expressions in lightning-fast time. Now, scientists have come a step closer to creating such an advanced machine. 'Emo', built by experts at Columbia University in New York, is the fastest humanoid in the world when it comes to mimicking a person's expressions. In fact, it can'predict' a person's smile by looking for subtle signs in their facial muscles and imitate them so that they're effectively smiling at the same time. Amazing video shows the bot copying a researcher's facial expressions in real time with eerie precision and remarkable speed, thanks to cameras in its eyes. Columbia engineers build Emo, a silicon-clad robotic face that makes eye contact and can anticipate and replicate a person's smile at effectively the same time British-made Ameca is described as the'world's most advanced humanoid robot' Emo is the creation of researchers at Columbia University's Creative Machines Lab in New York, who present their work in a new study in Scientific Reports.

It might look and act like a little girl, but this creepy entity may just be the next big breakthrough in artificial intelligence (AI). Tong Tong, meaning'little girl', has been dubbed the world's first AI child after it was revealed by scientists from the Beijing Institute for General Artificial Intelligence (BIGAI). According to its creators, the AI child can assign itself tasks, learn autonomously, and explore its environment. And, although it sounds like the plot of the science-fiction movie The Creator, Tong Tong's engineers say the AI can even experience emotion. In a video, BIGAI says that Tong Tong'has her own joy, anger and sorrow'.