Furhat is a back-projected humanoid social robot developed by the Swedish company Furhat Robotics. It uses projection-based facial rendering, speech synthesis and recognition, and programmed behavioral responses to support humanâÂÂmachine interaction. It has been deployed in sectors including education, healthcare, recruitment, and transport, and has been used in studies of social robotics at several universities.
Furhat is a humanoid robot composed of a physical bust with a translucent mask onto which facial features are projected. Facial expressions are back-projected onto this mask, allowing for the robot to change personas and emotional expressions without mechanical actuators. This projection-based system allows the display of different facial appearances and expressions without mechanical facial components.The system includes computer vision components for detecting and tracking faces within its field of view, and it can register multiple users at the same time.
The robot produces visual cues such as facial expressions, head orientation, gaze direction, and eyebrow movement as part of its interaction capabilities. Its hardware comprises a movable neck structure, a wide-angle camera, stereo microphones, and a speaker. These features can detect user gaze, speech, and proximity. Developers can build conversational flows using a no-code or Software Development Kit (SDK) interface.
The system has been referenced in academic studies related to humanâÂÂrobot interaction, including work examining gaze behavior, turn-taking, and interaction in group settings. Additional studies have considered variations in design and personalization in different application contexts.
Furhat is used for prototype and application development, with researchers and developers able to update Furhat's code to test out verbal and non-verbal features. The robot operates using a modular software platform supported by an official SDK and developer tools provided by Furhat Robotics. Developers can build applications using a domain-specific language based on Kotlin, with built-in support for dialogue flows, intent recognition, and multimodal interaction. The SDK includes a simulator that mirrors the robot's behavior and facial animations, allowing for local testing before deployment. Furhat also provides a Remote API compatible with Python, C#, and JavaScript, enabling control of the robot from external systems over a network. Applications can be developed using integrated development environments such as IntelliJ IDEA and integrated with third-party services such as Amazon Polly and ElevenLabs. Furhat can also be integrated with generative AI models such as OpenAI's GPT-3.5. for creating conversational flows.
Furhat featured at Bucharest Tech Week 2019 and has been used as a museum guide, for concierge services, and in other public engagement contexts. Furhat has also been incorporated in healthcare trials, with applications in autism therapy and mental health assessment. The most extensive application of the robot has been as a platform for academic research in human-robot interaction. Furhat has been used at:
Several Furhat-based robots have been used in applied settings. Examples include:
Heba Soffar of Science Online wrote that Furhat's mechanical abilities were limited by its lack of limbs and mobility and that its cost was higher compared to other social robots. Other commentators noted that hyperrealistic featuresâÂÂsuch as simulated empathy and personalized dialogueâÂÂmay raise ethical concerns, particularly in emotionally sensitive contexts like hiring and healthcare. Studies have linked these reactions to the "uncanny valley" effect. Opinion is divided about whether Furhat succeeds to evade the "uncanny valley" effect, or whether users find it unsettling to engage with it. These discussions align with wider debates in AI ethics around transparency, overtrust, and anthropomorphism in social robots.
Furhat has been featured in various media and demonstration settings that lean into popular culture. In one research study, the robot was programmed to display the face of former U.S. President Barack Obama as part of an experiment on non-verbal behavior.
Furhat was featured as the central character in Arise Amazons, a feminist theatre production staged at Orionteatern in Stockholm. The performance, directed by Karin Victorin, integrated Furhat as a speaking, emotive robotic head interacting with both performers and audience members. Described as a robot "driven by its desire for a body", Furhat was presented in a symbolic narrative exploring themes of embodiment, gender, and posthuman identity through live performance involving opera singers, dancers, drag artists, and horses. The production forms the subject of Victorin's master's thesis on social robotics and feminist technoscience.
In 2019, Furhat Robotics partnered with Bandai Namco to develop a Furhat-based version of Mirai Komachi, a Japanese virtual pop idol. The robot was used in amusement parks and entertainment venues in Japan, merging anime aesthetics with social robotics to explore new forms of character embodiment and fan engagement. Furhat has also been interviewed on The Millennial Way Show and mentioned in an episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver that explored the ethical and social implications of AI.