CES: IBM Introduces Watson-Powered Super Smart Robot

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Artificial intelligence took center stage at Ginni Rometty's CES keynote Wednesday, where the IBM CEO introduced a Japanese robot integrated with Watson cognitive learning capabilities.

Tokyo-based SoftBank Robotics developed and built Pepper, the humanoid robot that joined Rometty and SoftBank Vice President Kenichi Yoshida for an interactive demonstration.

With Watson, Pepper can learn the nuances of different language and voice tones. SoftBank and IBM, Armonk, N.Y., envision the robot playing a role in industries like banking, and Pepper articulated the different types of mortgages a bank could recommend to a customer.

Softbank launched a Pepper Partnership Program on Dec. 1, 2015, that supports enterprise application developers for Pepper. Through the program, the company provides technical support and security verification, and aids in sales promotions from development to initial sales.

Rometty and Yoshida said Pepper has a future in several global business verticals, including retail and manufacturing.

SoftBank will begin selling Pepper on Jan. 28.

PUBLISHED JAN. 7, 2016