Scientists try to teach robot to laugh at the right time

Erica being trained on how to have a sense of humour. Photograph: Inoue et al

Laughter comes in many forms, from a polite chuckle to a contagious howl of mirth. Scientists are now developing an AI system that aims to recreate these nuances of humour by laughing in the right way at the right time.

The team behind the laughing robot, which is called Erica, say that the system could improve natural conversations between people and AI systems.