This tech company will pay $ £100,000 if you let a robot use your face
Geomiq, a UK based machining start-up, is currently offering a £100,000 (about $130,000) challenge wherein they are looking for a ‘kind and friendly’ human face that could be used for a new line of human-looking robots.
Geomiq, who is working on behalf of an unnamed privately-funded robotics company, is inviting applications from the public who would like to be the face of a new “state-of-the-art humanoid.” The company will select a face and then fork it over thousands of humanoids that it has developed.
“A few weeks ago we were approached by a robotics company asking if we could help it with the finishing touches of a state-of-the-art humanoid robot it’s been working on. Details of the project are scarce due to a non-disclosure agreement we’ve signed with the designer and his investors, but this is what we do know,” Geomiq says in a blog post about the project.
“The company is searching for a ‘kind and friendly’ face to be the literal face of the robot once it goes into production. This will entail the selected person’s face being reproduced on potentially thousands of versions of the robots worldwide.”
While Geomiq didn’t provide specific details, the project which has been in development for five years will see humanoids act as a ‘virtual friend’ for elderly people. It is set to go into production next year and will soon be ‘readily available’ to the public.
The private company in question said it wants anonymity due to the nature of the product. The project has been funded by a number of independent VCs as well as a top fund based in Shanghai.
The selected candidate will get a fee of £100,000 to license the rights to his or her face. “We know that this is an extremely unique request, and signing over the licenses to your face is potentially an extremely big decision,” the company added.
If you are interested in being the face of state-of-the-art humanoid, you can email a photo of your face to [email protected]. If your face is selected for the next phase, you will be given full details on the project. However, if you aren’t chosen, you will not be contacted.