PLEO is an
animatronic
An animatronic is a puppet controlled electronically to move in a fluent way. Animatronics are the modern adaptation of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films, video games and in theme park attractions.
Anim ...
pet dinosaur toy manufactured by Innvo Labs, a company located in both Hong Kong and Nevada. The toy has the appearance and (imagined) behavior of a week-old baby ''
Camarasaurus'' dinosaur. It was designed by Caleb Chung, the co-creator of the
Furby, Chung's company
Ugobe first sold Pleo and was manufactured by Jetta Company Limited. The species of dinosaur chosen allows for concealing the sensors and
motors
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gene ...
needed for the animation, since it has a big body shape and relatively large head. According to their website, each Pleo would "learn" from its experiences and environment through
artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...
and develop an individual personality.
PLEO was unveiled on February 7, 2006, at the
DEMO Conference in
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in eastern Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and is part of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Named Scottsdale in 1894 after its founder Winfield Scott (chaplain), Winfield Scott, a retired Chaplain Corps (United States ...
, and was expected to come on the
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n and American markets around Fall 2007. PLEO shipments started on December 5, 2007.
In April 2009, Ugobe
laid off all of its employees and filed for
bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...
.
On June 8, 2009, the original PLEO manufacturer Jetta announced it is re-launching Pleo and are continuing the line including accessories such as the vital
battery and
battery charger
A battery charger, recharger, or simply charger, is a device that stores energy in an electric battery by running current through it. The charging protocol—how much voltage and current, for how long and what to do when charging is complete� ...
components. Since 14 July 2009, PLEO is owned by Innvo Labs Corporations (a division of Jetta).
In December 2011, the second generation, PLEO rb, was first launched in America, Europe and Hong Kong where Innvo Labs headquarters are located.
On July 10, 2017, the NPR "Hidden Brain" interviewer Shankar Vedantam used a Pleo robot on the stage of the "Aspen Ideas Festival" to illustrate some issues of "robot ethics" while interviewing
Kate Darling of MIT's Media Lab.
References
External links
{{commons category, Pleo
Official PLEOWorld Website for PLEO rbOfficial PLEOWorld Website for PLEO
Products and services discontinued in 2009
Entertainment robots
Robotic dinosaurs
Toy brands
2007 robots
Robots of the United States
Animatronic robots