More than just a machine

A washing machine follows a fixed program and stops. A robot is different: it can sense the world around it, make a decision based on what it senses, and then act, often adjusting on the fly when conditions change. That sense-think-act loop is what separates a robot from an ordinary machine.

This means a robot doesn't need to look like the metal humanoids from movies. A robotic vacuum that maps your living room and dodges furniture is a robot. So is a warehouse cart that reroutes itself around a dropped box, or a surgical arm that steadies itself against a patient's heartbeat.