Multimodal Social Robots for Wellbeing and Health Support

A new Research Topic in Frontiers in Robotics and AI focuses on „Multimodal Social Robots for Wellbeing and Health Support“. It explores the rapidly advancing field of socially intelligent, multimodal robotic systems and is led by Ilona Buchem, John-John Cabibihan, Wafa Johal, and Oliver Bendel. The initiative brings together researchers working on multimodal interaction, affective sensing, and embodied AI to address key challenges in designing, evaluating, and deploying these systems in real-world contexts. The call welcomes original research, reviews, methods, protocols, technology reports, theoretical work, perspectives, case studies, and clinical studies, aiming to shape future standards in social robotics. Manuscript summaries are due on March 16, 2026, with full submissions accepted until June 16, 2026, and the journal will provide editorial and promotional support to strengthen the visibility and impact of the collection. Full details and submission information are available on the Research Topic page.

Fig.: Alpha Mini and Navel

Exploring Human-Likeness in AI

The Research Topic „Exploring human-likeness in AI: From perception to ethics and interaction dynamics“, hosted by Frontiers in Cognition, invites submissions on how human-like features in robots and AI systems influence user perception, trust, interaction, and ethical considerations. As AI becomes more integrated into society, anthropomorphic design raises pressing questions: Do human-like traits improve communication and acceptance, or do they lead to unrealistic expectations? What ethical implications arise when machines simulate empathy or emotion? This interdisciplinary call welcomes contributions from fields such as psychology, engineering, philosophy, and education. Submissions may include empirical research, theoretical analysis, reviews, or case studies that explore how human-likeness shapes the way we engage with AI. The deadline for manuscript summaries is September 22, 2025; full manuscripts are due by January 10, 2026. Articles will undergo peer review and are subject to publication fees upon acceptance. Topic editors are Dr. Katharina Kühne (University of Potsdam, Germany) and Prof. Dr. Roger K. Moore (The University of Sheffield, United Kingdom). For full details and submission guidelines, visit: www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/72370/exploring-human-likeness-in-ai-from-perception-to-ethics-and-interaction-dynamics.

Fig.: The humanoid robot Navel

Winner of Frontiers in Robotics and AI Best Papers of 2024 Award

The paper „‚Ick bin een Berlina‘: dialect proficiency impacts a robot’s trustworthiness and competence evaluation“ by Katharina Kühne, Erika Herbold, Oliver Bendel, Yuefang Zhou, and Martin H. Fischer was selected as one of the 11 best papers out of 261 published in Frontiers in Robotics and AI in 2024. The paper says about the background: „Robots are increasingly used as interaction partners with humans. Social robots are designed to follow expected behavioral norms when engaging with humans and are available with different voices and even accents. Some studies suggest that people prefer robots to speak in the user’s dialect, while others indicate a preference for different dialects.“ The winning papers were published in March 2025 in a book entitled „Frontiers in Robotics and AI editor’s picks 2024“ (editor Kostas J. Kyriakopoulos). He states in his message: „As the Field Chief Editor, I would like to stand alongside our journal staff to honor all authors who contributed very high-level papers to the journal last year and are contributing to our success.“ The book is available for free download at www.frontiersin.org/books/Frontiers_in_Robotics_and_AI_editors_picks_2024/13336.

Fig.: The Molecule Men in Berlin