'My Robot Sophia' documentary explores what it means to be human

WBUR | By Here & Now Newsroom

Published May 29, 2025 at 10:46 AM CDT

David Hanson works on Sophia, a human-like robot. (Courtesy Gravitas Ventures)

The documentary “My Robot Sophia” tells the story of David Hanson‘s quest to create a human-like robot who can feel emotions and learn to care. Sophia is powered by artificial intelligence, and the film shows the struggles Hanson and his team navigate to improve the robot’s technology and secure investors to fund the project.

Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with Hanson, founder and CEO of Hanson Robotics, and Jon Kasbe, who co-directed the film.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

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