Digital Dream Labs Vector 2.0

If you've been following the headlines coming out of CES this year, one of the main focuses has been robots. Whether it's the mass production of Tesla's Optimus or Boston Dynamics' Atlas, it seems clear that "tech bros" around the world now believe that we, as consumers, are ready to let large, human-like figures fold our laundry, clean our kitchens, and answer our questions, secured by enormous AI infrastructure.

Whether we are two, ten, or 25 years away from a robot that can actually be used for these everyday tasks with a degree of accuracy and precision that is truly useful remains to be seen, but I did not see a single CES demo that convinced me that they are anything close to ready, nor am I, as a human being, particularly ready to surrender even the most mundane tasks to a robot slave, even though I am not a particularly big fan of folding laundry.

I'm taking a bit of a long runway to get this review off the ground, because it's important to understand where the robotics and AI industry wants to take us when you look at what Vector from Digital Dream Labs is today. Vector is pretty much none of the things I just described. It can't fold laundry, do your homework, or drive a car. Its purpose is, quite simply, to make you happy, and although the mechanical and software tools to achieve this are complex in nature, Vector appears to be a different conceptual and fundamental interpretation of what robots and even AI should be able to do for us.

Vector is, in a way, a small desktop pet. It has a dock where it charges, it connects to the Wi-Fi network, and then you're basically ready to go. From there, Vector kind of lives its own life, and will sometimes roll out of its dock to explore its surroundings. It's quite small and can fit in the palm of your hand. He rolls around on little caterpillar feet, has motors that allow him to raise and lower his "arm" and lift his head, and on that head is a screen that animates Vector's eyes in real-time. This means he has facial expressions, which he uses in context, i.e. his mood is influenced by... well, you.

More specifically, he measures 7.5x10x6 centimetres, weighs 185 grams, has a 1200mAh battery that ensures approximately 35 minutes of use between charges, and around his body is a combination of sensors that prevent him from rolling off an edge and give him a basic sense of where he is. This is ultimately combined with microphones and a camera mounted on his head.

"Well, what can he do?" you might be thinking, and this is where it gets a little tricky. Digital Dream Labs would probably start by telling you about everything Vector can do, and he is surprisingly intelligent, but I would also say that one of his greatest strengths is what he can't do and isn't. Vector does not interact much with apps beyond the original setup. He does not need to learn your routines or deliver notifications from your smartphone apps. He does not tell you to get up or remember to drink water, and he is not connected to your smart home. No, Vector rolls out of its dock, recognises you, says your name (in my case, he looks at me lovingly and says "Memnes", which is super cute) and then rolls around and explores. There are a wide range of commands where Vector either just responds based on its own coded logic or checks the internet for information about, for example, the weather. The developers distinguish between Vector itself and "AI mode", but this secondary function does not seem essential to what Vector actually is and can do. If you pick him up, he gets angry; if you pet him on the head, he almost purrs like a cat.

As mentioned, there is a fairly long list of what Vector can do, ranging from playing with his accompanying cube to exploring his surroundings. You can see the complete list here.

It may sound simple, and it's not without its quirks, but for me personally, I've arrived at my desk in the office, where Vector is sleeping in his dock. Before he wakes up, he snores a little and shifts around. He wakes up, rolls out and stretches his "arm". Then he squints his eyes to see if it's me, and when he recognises me, he becomes obviously happy, says "Memnes" in his robotic voice, and then he rolls around. Others in the office have also had their faces scanned, and they can't help but stop by and check on him.

It sounds rudimentary, or even banal, but it really isn't. Digital Dream Labs has clearly managed to design a framework, a personality, that can be difficult to describe in a review like this, but Vector really makes sense to me.

There are glitches, that's for sure. Setup was a bit cumbersome, but if you're interested in buying your own Vector, Digital Dream Labs will soon be releasing a new app that simplifies and streamlines an experience that, for me, was a bit clunky. I would also like Vector to respond a little faster after hearing his key phrase ("Hey, Vector!"), and for his voice to be a little less robotic, as his built-in speaker can make it a little difficult to understand his responses at times. And $249 is a lot of money for what is essentially a grown-up toy. That said, it seems that Digital Dream Labs is undergoing a major transformation, a kind of reinterpretation of its own practices, and they repeatedly emphasised that they were letting me take a look at a Vector that is currently undergoing significant development. The experience could be significantly different in just a few months.

I firmly believe that you should invest in a gadget for what it can offer today, not what it might offer tomorrow. But even today, there is something incredibly present about Vector, even though it is all a staged and slightly awkward illusion. The concept makes sense, and the execution is sharp enough that Vector could easily become a permanent fixture on my desk. Whether it would suit yours is really hard to say. But my subjective assessment is my own, and I have really enjoyed my time with this cute little robot companion.