Digital Trends

A ballroom dancer, a spaceship, and a robot bartender. What do these three things all have in common? They’re on display currently at Wired Magazine's NextFest event. What is NextFest you ask? It’s a showcase of emerging technology that could one day change the world we live in.

The show features over 130 exhibits and is being held this year in New York at the Jacob Javits Center for three days. The event also has guest speakers, panels, and live demonstrations of some of the coolest geek-related stuff around. We went and covered the highlights of the show so you won’t miss out if you didn’t get a chance to stop in this year. Here are some of our personal favorites:

Partner Ballroom Dance Robots
Although these robots have a pretty weird look to them and could be waiting to kill the next John Connor, they still love to dance. The folks at Tohoku University have spent nearly $300,000 on developing these robots that are able to ballroom dance like humans. They can match your lead, anticipate steps, and even take a bow at the end. Other practical applications of the robot include assisting the elderly and helping people in hospitals with walking.

Ballroom Dancer 

Paro
No matter how macho you think you are, even the toughest dude will fall for Paro. Modeled after a baby harp seal, this lovable guy has sensors placed all over his body so that he can interact in different ways. Play with his whiskers and he’ll let out a playful sound. Bop him on the head and he’ll frown with sadness. Don’t call him a Furby though; Paro is designed to help out in nursing homes to reduce stress among residents. After spending just five minutes with Paro, we felt a lot giddier inside – no really, we did.

Paro the baby seal