Living Doll: Turned on by a robot

15 June 2015 - 02:27 By Staff reporter and © The Daily Telegraph

A company in California is aiming to produce an advanced sex doll that can stimulate customers "on an emotional and intellectual level". Matt McMullen is working on a project called Realbotix, a range of sex dolls which will not only satisfy their customers' physical needs, but will also be able to communicate and appear to think.His new dolls build on the success of his previous range, RealDolls (McMullen claims to have sold more than 5000 at up to $10000 each) by adding animatronics and artificial intelligence to the mix; he calls it the ''customisable programming of personality", which will create the illusion that the doll is enjoying the experience.''The hope is to create something that will actually arouse someone on an emotional, intellectual level, beyond the physical," he adds.However, McMullen argues that he is not trying to create a replica human.''You can look at the best of my dolls and still tell it's a doll, and I want to keep in that arena," he says. "A moving doll is different from a detailed-to-the-finest-skin-pore copy of a person, and making it move. For me that's a little off-putting." ..

There’s never been a more important time to support independent media.

From World War 1 to present-day cosmopolitan South Africa and beyond, the Sunday Times has been a pillar in covering the stories that matter to you.

For just R80 you can become a premium member (digital access) and support a publication that has played an important political and social role in South Africa for over a century of Sundays. You can cancel anytime.

Already subscribed? Sign in below.



Questions or problems? Email helpdesk@timeslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00.