Machines need to get better at ignoring stuff because right now the energy they guzzle to process all the data they receive makes them a global warming risk.
On an indoor soccer field in the Dutch city of Eindhoven, a championship-winning team is running its drills. Each player stakes out a position, makes precise adjustments and fires the orange ball at one another.
On the sidelines, manager René van de Molengraft paces and observes. He’d yell instructions at his players if he could – but his team consists of five thigh-highrobots on wheels, with names like Zessi and Robodinho. They move on their own; during each 30-minute game, no human controls them.
