Robot-for-Hire programed to perform Buddhist funeral rites in Japan

BREITBART NEWS

TOKYO (Reuters) – A Japanese company has introduced a new role for SoftBank’s humanoid robot “Pepper” – a Buddhist priest for hire at funerals. Chanting sutras in a computerized voice while tapping a drum, the robot was on display on Wednesday at a funeral industry fair – the Life Ending Industry Expo – in Tokyo. Nissei Eco Co., an unlisted plastic molding maker, wrote the chanting software for “Pepper”, which was introduced by SoftBank Group Corp. in 2014. [More]