The AV1 robot, created by the Norwegian company No Isolation, can replace a child in the classroom by acting as their eyes, ears, and voice and assisting them in maintaining social connections with their peers.
The AV1 appears similar to a simplified, blank head and torso. It has a camera, microphone, and speaker built in, and it can rotate 360 degrees. Students use an app that requires a special password to operate remotely from a desk teachers set up for them.
“They can look at different corners of the classroom by tapping or swiping their finger around the screen,” stated Florence Salisbury, director of marketing at No Isolation. Via the speaker, the student can communicate with the teacher or other students. The app also features a “raise hand” feature that causes a light to flash on the robot’s head. Additionally, they can choose which emojis appear in the robot’s eyes.
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According to Salisbury, there are approximately 1,000 AV1, robots in use at each of the 3,000 active AV1 units spread across 17 countries, primarily in the UK and Germany.
Schools in the UK have the option of renting the AV1 for approximately £150 ($200) a month or purchasing it all at once for £3,700 (just under $4,960), plus an extra £780 (roughly $1,045) for a service package.
Salisbury claims that the robot’s capacity to uphold social ties may be its greatest advantage. She related the tale of a 15-year-old student in Warwickshire, England, who uses AV1, and whose friends bring the robot along for lunch so they can continue to interact socially.
Salisbury stated, “This connection to school becomes a lifeline for that student, especially for those with a medical condition, during a long absence, where classmates might not see their friend for an extended period.”
The latest official figures show, that in the autumn of 2023–2024, over 19% of English students missed school regularly, with 7.8% of those absences being attributable to illness alone. This percentage is higher than it was before the pandemic.
Remote learning became commonplace during the COVID-19 pandemic, but for many students, it was no longer an option as classes resumed. Although AV1 was developed before the pandemic, some educational institutions have reported utilizing the robots to assist students, who have had difficulty readjusting to their new surroundings.
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Children with life-threatening illnesses can receive 25 AV1 robots from the UK’s Chartwell Cancer Trust. According to founding trustee Michael Douglas, who spoke with Brit News, the robots allow kids to continue learning even when they are in critical care. “The parents genuinely love them and they truly make a difference,” he remarked. “They elevate the child’s status.”
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However, he conceded that obtaining the AV1 system into hospitals or schools can present administrative difficulties and that “red tape can be a real issue.”
He continued by saying that some schools might find it difficult to keep up with the technical infrastructure required for smooth operation due to poor Wi-Fi or areas with poor mobile signals.
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The Orihime avatar robot in Japan and the AV1 in Germany were the subject of a June study that published in the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Digital Health. The study concluded that both technologies “bear high potential for children to stay socially and educationally connected.”
It did, however, add that for avatar technologies to be implemented successfully, it would be necessary to set up mechanisms that would allow for equal access to them. Additionally, teacher training sessions on the technical and social aspects of the robots are crucial.
In August of last year, No Isolation launched AV1 Academy, a training resource library to enhance the robot’s usability.
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Salisbury claims that the AV1 has strong privacy features built in. Screenshots and recordings are blocked by the app and no personal information is gathered. The livestream is secured by encryption and only one device can connect at a time. The robot indicates active use by lighting up its head and eyes.
Other avatar robots are available on the market some, like Buddy and VGo are mobile and can move around the office or school. Others have a screen that displays the user’s face. According to Salisbury, AV1 is more useful without wheels and at just one kilogramme, it is light enough for instructors or students to carry in a customized rucksack as they go between classes.
The fact that the child’s face isn’t displayed on a screen, she continued, might be helpful. It has been observed that relieving the pressure to appear on camera increases the possibility, that the robot will be used for students who avoid school because of emotional issues, according to Salisbury.
