Use of the Developing Technology for Voice, Facial, and Handwriting Recognition, Etc.
   We are steadily developing capabilities in desktop computers that we have previously considered uniquely human, such as

• voice recognition,
• recognition of faces,
• handwriting recognition,
• pattern recognition,
• natural language processing,
• voice synthesis and
• OCR

    These facilities are rapidly becoming part and parcel of the workaday computer world. While our proficiencies for performing these functions don't yet match those of the human mind, give us another one to two orders of magnitude in computing speeds—e.g., 5 to 10 years—and another 10 years of software development and we may be pushing human-level performance in these areas, using conventional programming techniques and near-term hardware. In addition, rapid progress is being made in adaptive control algorithms and other artificial intelligence functions. We may not have to wait centuries or decades to achieve near-human artificial intelligence.
    It's important to distinguish between performing functions upon command and a self-organizing system that gives commands.
    It may be that we can incorporate these capabilities into our robot's brain rather than forcing it to acquire them the hard way through trial and error. However, our baby robot should have the machinery to learn such skills even if some skills happen to be pre-programmed into it.
    I think that the critical challenge lies in the emulation of feelings, motivations, and self-awareness.