His name is "ifbot" and he gets his name from people wondering, "What IF a robot could do even this…?" He was born from a joint development project launched by several companies in Aichi Prefecture, including Brother Industries Ltd., the manufacturer of sewing machines, printers and other products. He can recognize human facial expressions and make you laugh when talking with him. If you look annoyed he may ask, "Hey, are you angry?" If you answer "No, not at all," he may say "Then let's have a talk!" or "Why don't we play now?"

His conversational skills are at about the level of a 5-year-old. He is a cute little thing and expresses himself in other ways besides talking—his eyes swivel about and his mouth lights up, giving him about 40 facial expressions. He will welcome visitors at the entrance to an Expo pavilion, play with kids, and sing and dance on a stage with street performers.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has developed a robot called Wakamaru to help out around the home. Its name comes from Ushiwakamaru, a young nimble hero who punished evildoers in a legend from the middle ages.

Wakamaru interacts with people, communicates via wireless LAN (local area network), and moves about within spaces it recognizes. Its main job is to look after the home while you are away—for example, it can keep company with your children or elderly relatives who stay at home, surf the Internet for information you need, and send you an alarm if something seems amiss at home.

At Expo 2005, Wakamaru will spend most of its time welcoming visitors, talking with them, and guiding them about the pavilion. It is programmed to speak four languages: Japanese, English, Korean and Chinese.

When its head turns to answer your call, or when its head leans to one side to show it did not hear what you said, you may decide you want one for your own home.