Anyone who has tried losing weight will tell you having a personal trainer can make all the difference. Besides watching your diet and giving you suggestions, simply having a partner can also help you stay focused on the goals you set for yourself. Apparently, that partner doesn’t even have to be human.

Autom was created by Cory Kidd, who got the idea for a weight-loss robot during his time as a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab. He wanted to make “something that could have a very large benefit”, and this robot may just fit that category. To use Autom, you must first enter your diet plan, which includes how many calories of what you plan on taking, and how much exercise you plan on doing. The robot keeps track of that information and reminds you (with speech) on a daily basis how good or bad you are doing.

What makes this different from just a lifeless computer monitor is that Autom offers encouragement to users, motivating them to work harder and not to give up. Besides being able to talk, Autom can move her little head, blink her eyes and respond to the mood of each user. Work is still being done on the facial-recognition software, which would allow the robot to tell apart different people. All this is a psychological strategy used to influence the user, as people will feel like they are communicating more with a person than a computer. It is easy to say “I quit” and switch off a monitor, but it’s much harder when you know you have a partner that’s concerned for you and wants to talk.

Next year, Autom will be tested out by a major US insurance company, and if things go well, plans are to start using her on a wide-scale basis.

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