CES 2016: Yamaha Motobot to Start Riding on Race Tracks by 2017

Yamaha Motobot was one of the key highlights of the Yamaha portfolio in 2015. The human-like robot was developed to ride (yes, you heard it right) motorcycles at high speeds and provide valuable inputs to Yamaha for future development of more safety features. The Motobot is currently in its second phase of development which, most likely, means that it will start riding a bike on a race track by 2017.

Motobot is capable of performing innumerable complex motions that, in general, humans can do far more easily than robots can. Yamaha believes that creating an autonomous robot capable of piloting a regular vehicle that has no modifications will help them improve their products and help develop "advanced rider safety systems."

At the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Yamaha officials said, "The sophisticated technologies acquired in achieving the high objectives detailed here are also intended to be applied to advanced technologies and rider support systems in the future, as well as other options that may segue into new business development."

Once on the race track, the Yamaha Motobot will be riding motorcycles at speeds over 200km/h. Yamaha will also add learning abilities to the Motobot which will allow it to learn from its experiences on the track picking its own racing lines, and push boundaries of the motorcycle more erratically than a human being.