Meet Milo, a robot helping kids with autism

Today's robots are finding new ways to help humans. I'm Bridget Carey. This is your CNET update. [MUSIC] Meet Milo, an expressive, two foot tall humanoid robot that resembles something out of a Japanese anime cartoon. He speaks slowly as he plays games and teaches trivia to kids He even throws dance parties, but this isn't another talking toy. Milo is designed to help children with Autism. While you may think his dancing skills could use some work there's actually something incredible going on beyond the wires and gears. Research has shown autistic children are opening up and engaging with Mylo better than with human teachers. Children on autism spectrum were found to engage with the robot 87 percent of the time, compared to three percent with a therapist. Kids with autism can feel comfortable with computers but communicating with people can be a challenge. Milo serves as a bridge and his expressive face helps teach social skills. Research says children using Milo in therapy have increased eye contact, body language, and friendliness. Created by Dallas based company RoboKind. Milo is being used now in 50 schools as an autism therapy tool. Milo was just one of several robots on display at the robo universe expo in New York City Robots are predicted to be one of the fastest growing industries in the world, and although robots have been serving in assembly lines for decades now, some arms on the factory floor are getting more human friendly. Checkout Baxter from Rethink Robotics. When Baxter is working at the assembly line his eyes give him some human personality, but they also are a safety feature, his eyes give a clue on which arm is gonna move next. Normally robot arms in the factory had to be surrounded by a protective fence, because, you know, they can kill you if they get hit. Now the fence is not necessary because they stop when detecting any resistance. Robot arms are also easier to program for smaller or midsize businesses. I was able to program this arm in less than two minutes without any coding. To create a series of positions, you can physically move the arm to where you want it to go next. And it just remembers. Next time you go shopping, a robot could give you assistance. Lowe's Home Improvement is using these rolling information kiosks. If you need to find an item, just say it or type it in. And it'll show you where it is and it leads you to the aisle it's located The maker, Fellow Robots, says it's learned a few lessons in early tests. One frustrated customer hit it with a shopping cart on purpose. But other robots could even follow you around. NewBotic had one called the Doog that demonstrates how signage can follow you on a show floor, like a little puppy. That's your tech news update. You can head over to cnet.com for more. From our studios in New York, I'm Bridget Carey. [MUSIC]