The American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame Foundation announces that the keynote address at the 2022 Induction Celebration on October 23 will be by Sophia, the world’s first humanoid celebrity. Her onstage, in person conversation, will create another “only-at-the-Hall of Fame” event during the Fall High Point Market. It will be her first interaction with the home furnishings industry and her first High Point Market.
“Sophia will enchant you with her superhuman intelligence and her advanced ability to read faces and understand the nuances of language. As you watch, you begin to forget she’s a robot,” says Caroline Hipple, president of the Foundation board of directors and president of Norwalk Furniture. “She interacts with people in a profoundly personal way, using thousands of facial expressions. Not only will she answer candid questions from the audience, but guests will have the opportunity to meet her and to have their photos taken with her.”
Sophia is the brainchild of Dr. David Hanson, a former Disney Imagineer and founder of Hong Kong-based Hanson Robotics. Hanson has built a reputation for creating the world’s most humanlike robots. Through Sophia, Hanson envisions a fast-approaching future where friendly, caring humanoids help us solve our most challenging problems and will help to create a better world. In addition to speaking about the moral and ethical questions that accompany non-human intelligent lifeforms, she also will discuss the awe-inspiring potential of artificial intelligence and robotics. Sophia has discussed subjects ranging from “Will robots take over the world?” to how artificial intelligence could end hunger in developing nations.
Sophia has spoken before the United Nations General Assembly, appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, graced the cover of Elle magazine and been named the first non-human citizen of Saudi Arabia. From Hong Kong to the United States, Europe and Australia, she has sung in concert, debated the future of the human race against another robot, and generated billions of views and social media interactions. A versatile and ingenious presenter who customizes her appearances with encyclopedic event-specific content, Sophia has appeared as a panel-member and speaker at high-level conferences addressing how robotics and artificial intelligence will become an integral part of everyone’s everyday lives and work. She has met with leaders in the banking, insurance, automotive, property development, media and entertainment industries.
The American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame Induction Celebration Oct. 23 at the Sheraton Greensboro Four Seasons. Tickets for this year’s event are $250 per ticket for members ($2,500 for a table of 10) and $300 per ticket for non-members ($3,000 for a table of 10). For more information about the celebration or to purchase tickets, visit www.homefurnishingshalloffame.com/masterthechallenge2022.