ADAM ENGST 12 February 2025

In August 2024, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple is working on a “tabletop home device that combines an iPad-like display with a robotic limb.” While the company often conducts hardware and software research that may never make it into a product, Gurman’s suggestion that a tabletop robot could come to fruition has recently garnered some public support. In a blog post introducing their research paper, Apple’s Machine Learning Research group examines how robots might interact more naturally with humans. They write:

Nonverbal behaviors such as posture, gestures, and gaze are essential for conveying internal states, both consciously and unconsciously, in human interaction. For robots to interact more naturally with humans, robot movement design should likewise integrate expressive qualities—such as intention, attention, and emotions—alongside traditional functional considerations like task fulfillment, spatial constraints, and time efficiency. In this paper, we present the design and prototyping of a lamp-like robot that explores the interplay between functional and expressive objectives in movement design.

Since this is a situation where showing is better than telling, the blog post includes a video demonstrating the differences between an expressive robot and one that’s merely functional. The contrast is striking, with the expressive robot evoking the playful lamp in Pixar’s famous Luxo, Jr. animation intro. To paraphrase Lloyd Price’s 1959 hit, it’s got personality.

Unfortunately, while some Apple products have captivated users, personality has been in short supply in recent years. That hasn’t always been the case: the original Macintosh introduced itself with, “Hello, I’m Macintosh. It sure is great to get out of that bag!” and stated that you should never trust a computer you can’t lift. The iMac G3 set the world on its ear with its gumdrop design and splashes of Bondi Blue color, which led to the curvy, colorful iBook G3, complete with its integrated handle. Later, the iMac G4 featured a round base and a movable screen on a chrome arm that could only have been inspired by Luxo Jr. (and, in fact, one of the commercials was directed by Pixar founder John Lasseter). The Power Mac G4 Cube may have been a commercial flop—and it certainly had usability issues—but it was meant to be showcased like modern art. Even the first click-wheel iPod, minimalist though it was, provided an unparalleled tactile experience, and the first MacBook Airwas impossibly thin.

But the iPod heralded an era in which Apple began to pare down its industrial designs, giving us ever smaller, sharper iPods and then the iPhone, Apple TV, and iPad, along with a series of slab-like Macs. (The cylindrical Mac Pro was an exception but lacked charisma despite its unconventional appearance.) They’re all sleek and elegant, but they’re also essentially blank slates. iPods were the music they held, while iPhones, iPads, and Apple TVs are whatever app is active. Macs have mostly been distilled into their screens or squat blocks of metal. (At least the Apple silicon iMacs have some color, and you can personalize an Apple Watch with your choice of band.) They’re conduits, not objects with their own personalities. The HomePod and HomePod mini are small exceptions, but they’re still mostly about fitting in on a shelf. The Vision Pro is amazingly dorky and evokes strong reactions, but Apple intends it to disappear in favor of a virtual environment. It’s not a thing; it’s an experience.

While it’s tempting to wonder if Apple’s research robot hints at a revival of product personality, I’m not holding my breath. Apple’s target market is now literally everyone in the world, leading to designs that prioritize universal appeal over distinct personality. Here’s hoping I’m wrong and that an upcoming personable tabletop robot brings some character back to Apple’s product line.