Students to display advanced robots at IIT-Bombay Techfest
Around 1.40 lakh students of more than 2,500 colleges will be attending Techfest of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Bombay from December 29 to 31. The annual science and technology festival will witness the advancements in robotics as the first humanoid robot Sophia will be attending the fest along with other robots from different countries of the world.
The festival will witness exhibitions, war of robots, sessions, talks on advance- ment of science and technology, gaming competitions and a display of various creations and experiments. The theme of the festival is digitalisation, sustainability and biotechnology. Speakers like Manohar Parrikar, former Defence Minister of India, Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan and Tanmay Bakshi, world’s youngest IBM Watson which is an intelligence engine handling Artificial Intelligence will enlighten students.
Robots, created by students and alumni, capable of performing various tasks will be displayed at the fest. Soumyo Mukherji, Dean of Students Affairs (DOSA) of IIT Bombay, said, “We have created robots which can perform various tasks like lifting things, jumping, walking and even certain domestic tasks. The creation of a robot depends entirely on programming and advancement of technology.”
The robot Sophia based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) will interact with attendees. Sophia, the humanoid robot, has gained citizenship of Saudi Arabia. “We want to evolve with time and create something better. We are providing a platform for students to create something new and it depends on students if they aim to create something like Sophia,” Mukherji added.
Students mentioned robotics is an emerging field which shows the advancement of technology. Akshay Joshi, a student, said, “We are far more advanced as compared to other countries of the world when it comes to technology and robotics. There is a lot of young talent which can create wonders if given the opportunity, platform and necessary funding.”