Cozmo, the animation inspired robot comes to life

A new palm-sized robot is vying to become a favorite toy, equipped with a cheeky personality and hopes for a possible future entertainment franchise. Armed with sensors, motors and visual capabilities and controlled using a smartphone, is the latest product from San Francisco-based robotics startup Anki. Cozmo is not the first smartphone-controlled robotic toy. But Cozmo's personality is driven by artificial intelligence as he learns to recognize familiar faces and play games such as Quick Tap, in which he challenges a player to match colors. When he loses a game, he throws his building blocks in a tantrum, and when he wins, he likes to show off. Priced at $179, Cozmo was inspired by the playful, heartwarming bots seen in animated films such as “Wall-E,” and co-designed by a former Pixar animator.