12 pivotal moments in the history of robotics, from Isaac Asimov to self-driving cars

In the image a silver, faceless, humanoid, robot stands still as a lady take a photo of the robot on her phone.

Few technologies have captured the human imagination in quite the same way as robots. The idea of machines that can walk and talk like us has been a staple of science fiction for decades. The reality has been more prosaic — most real-world robots are disembodied arms relegated to dull and repetitive factory work. But recent breakthroughs in both artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic hardware mean that the smart, humanoids of our imaginations are getting ever closer to reality.

Here are 12 of the most important milestones that got us here.