Pepper was the humanoid robot unveiled by SoftBank in 2014 to interpret and respond to human emotions.
Developed by SoftBank Robotics with French company Aldebaran, Pepper was designed for social interaction rather than heavy physical work. Cameras, microphones and other sensors helped it recognize faces, voices and conversational cues. Its software then selected gestures, speech and movements intended to make interactions feel more natural.
Pepper stood about 1.2 metres tall and used a wheeled base instead of walking legs. SoftBank promoted it for reception, retail and educational roles, where conversation and guidance were more important than carrying objects.
Pepper is sometimes confused with Nao, Aldebaran’s smaller bipedal research and education robot. The two platforms shared technology and corporate history, but Pepper was the larger public-facing robot introduced for social interaction.