Pioneers of AI Could a robot fix the loneliness epidemic?
Mar 18, 2026
Grace Brown, Co-founder and CEO of Andromeda building Abby, a social humanoid robot for older adults. She discusses why physical AI needs emotional intelligence. She explains Abby’s playful design, sensing stack, and how nonverbal cues shape interactions. She covers safety, ethical guardrails, and plans to scale social robots in care settings.
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Two Modes Solve Different Needs
- Abby serves both group activities and one-on-one interactions to address social and emotional needs in aged-care settings.
- In groups she performs dances and quizzes; one-on-one she checks in, speaks native languages, and builds relationships.
Design Balances Relatable and Clearly Robotic
- Abby's design intentionally avoids the uncanny valley by being anthropomorphic but clearly robotic and colorful at roughly 110 centimeters tall.
- Grace modeled Abby's warmth on Disney/Pixar character principles to evoke genuine emotional connection without appearing humanlike.
Personality Adapts To Context
- Abby adapts personality to audiences: playful and childlike by default but configurable for context, like a Christian version for a Catholic nursing home.
- Personalization includes language, tone, and activity preferences to match residents' cultural and cognitive needs.