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Robot Pepper goes 'live' aboard Costa Diadema

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Pepper interacts with a passenger (Photo: Costa Cruises)
Pepper, the 'humanoid' robot, is now interacting with passengers aboard Costa Diadema. Pepper can answer questions, dance and propose selfies.

Five of the robots are aboard the ship's seven-day cruises in the western Mediterranean to entertain travelers, part of a previously announced agreement between Costa Cruises and SoftBank Robotics, part of SoftBank Group.

Introduced in 2014 in Tokyo, Pepper is equipped with a high-level interface for communicating with humans, using the latest advances in voice and facial recognition. On Costa Diadema, Pepper speaks Italian, English and French.

'Our goal is to amaze people who choose to spend their holidays with us and to go beyond their expectations and offer something unforgettable,' said Costa Cruises president Neil Palomba. He added that interacting with Pepper will be 'an incredible experience for all our guests.'

The robots are positioned in five areas of Costa Diadema. In addition to answering questions about the ship, on-board services and destinations, Pepper initiates interactions when people are near. Pepper can dance with passengers, involve them in games or propose taking a selfie and posing for that.

In September five additional Pepper robots are scheduled to join Costa Fascinosa.