Georgia Tech professor Ayanna Howard is using interactive robots to help autistic kids engage with others, socially and emotionally. Her company, Zyrobotics, is commericalizing this technology.
In a study, 18 kids, between the ages of 4 and 12, five of whom had autism, interacted with two robots which expressed 20 emotional states, including boredom, excitement, and nervousness. As children heard, saw, smelled, tasted, and touched in different scenarios, the robots showed them appropriate responses. The results were increased engagement when the robots engaged with the participants in sensory stations.