Johannesburg, South Africa - July 11, 2019 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of AI robot "Sophia"
2. David Hanson, founder and CEO of Hanson Robotics, talking on stage, with Sophia
3. Sophia speaking
4. SOUNDBITE (English) David Hanson, founder and CEO, Hanson Robotics (ending with shot 5):
"We've really pushed the envelope of manufacturability, of the quality of the facial expressions, of the consistency, of the manufacturing design, the intersection of the arts and the engineering into a whole system that we can use to help people."
5. Various of Sophia
6. Various of mechanical arm fetching hat
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Frederik Langenhoven, sales manager, Cobots (Pty) Ltd.:
"I think it depends on how repeatable, how much repetitive tasks do you do in your day-to-day activities. If you do a lot of that, yes, there's a possibility. If you don't do a lot of the same task over and over, not soon at all. Having said that, some tasks are easier to automate than others."
8. Hanson talking with Sophia
9. SOUNDBITE (English) David Hanson, founder and CEO, Hanson Robotics (starting with shot 8/ending with shot 10):
"Living caring machines, machines that enhance humanity's capacity for creativity, that enhance the survival of life on the planet are super benevolent super intelligence and it's not just AI that would achieve that but this synergy with our machines."
10. Various of Sophia
11. Camera on Sophia
12. SOUNDBITE (English) David Hanson, founder and CEO, Hanson Robotics (starting with shot 11):
"Finding out how AI can help us and noting and seeing the way that it could maybe complicate our lives. And choosing the right path, while at the same time not forgetting to let ourselves dream a little bit."
13. Various of robot carrying box
14. Various of robot displaying lifting, delivering box

As artificial intelligence is making inroads into the corporate world, there are some misconceptions about AI - something that Duke Corporate Education planned to dispel at its annual event in Johannesburg.

The keynote address at the event was delivered by Dr David Hanson, creator of "Sophia", an internationally renowned AI robot.

"We've really pushed the envelope of manufacturability, of the quality of the facial expressions, of the consistency, of the manufacturing design, the intersection of the arts and the engineering into a whole system that we can use to help people," said Hanson, founder and CEO of Hanson Robotics.

AI and robotics can fulfill some tasks and do so more efficiently, but at this stage that's limited.

"I think it depends on how repeatable, how much repetitive tasks do you do in your day-to-day activities. If you do a lot of that, yes, there's a possibility. If you don't do a lot of the same task over and over, not soon at all. Having said that, some tasks are easier to automate than others," said Frederik Langenhoven, sales manager of Cobots (Pty) Ltd.

On a broader level, Hanson is looking at AI to get involved in creativity and blue sky thinking.

"Living caring machines, machines that enhance humanity's capacity for creativity, that enhance the survival of life on the planet are super benevolent super intelligence and it's not just AI that would achieve that but this synergy with our machines," said Hanson.

There are some concerns that AI could be mis-used.

"Finding out how AI can help us and noting and seeing the way that it could maybe complicate our lives. And choosing the right path, while at the same time not forgetting to let ourselves dream a little bit," said Hanson.