Japan robot astronaut talks Santa in first chat with spaceman

AFP Photo / Kibo Robot Project

This undated handout picture released from KIBO Robot Project on December 20, 2013 shows Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata (L) smiling with the humanoid robot "Kirobo" (R) in the International Space Station (ISS) in space.

Tokyo:  The world's first robot astronaut has begun chatting to the Japanese commander of the International Space Station, in what was being billed as the first conversation of its kind.

Kirobo, a pint-sized android equipped with artificial intelligence and capable of learning how to respond appropriately to humans, even put a marker down for Christmas, telling Koichi Wakata he expected a visit from a certain man bearing gifts.

"Santa Claus will come to space," Kirobo, wearing a Santa hat, told Wakata as they drifted in zero gravity hundreds of miles (kilometres) above the Earth.

"What will you ask for from Santa Claus, Kirobo?" asked the Japanese astronaut.

"I want a toy rocket... let's ask Santa Claus."

The unscripted conversation, in Japanese, was held on December 6, with footage unveiled on Friday.

It is part of a longer-term project to see how a robot can act as a companion for isolated people, particularly to see if it can develop conversational skills.