MIT Affective Intelligent Driving Agent: Robotic backseat driver

Researchers at MIT are in the process of developing the Affective Intelligent Driving Agent, an in-car robot with an intelligent navigation system.

AIDA can identify the best route between your commonly visited destinations, taking into account environmental factors, like traffic, and your habits, such as popping out for a biryani on Thursdays. It can also give feedback on your driving, and responds to your facial expressions with its emotive 'eyes'.

MIT is aiming to inculcate a spirit of harmony between you and your car, with a system that offers "the same kind of guidance as an informed and friendly companion". Every backseat driver we've come across so far has only caused us to contemplate brutal murder, but at least if you bludgeon this one until it stops making any noise you won't go to jail for it.

Check out our photo gallery and the video below to find out more.

AIDA will probably look like this most of the time if you're a deeply rubbish driver.

You may also find AIDA looks like this when you're about to careen into a mass of pedestrians.

Here's AIDA safely nestled in the dashboard, the cheeky devil.

When planning your route, AIDA can take into account the fact that you're low on fuel, need to pick up some loo roll, and want to avoid mashing up pedestrians at the street fair.