Tokyo-based start-up Tsubame Industries has developed a 4.5-metre-tall (14.8-feet), four-wheeled robot that looks like "Mobile Suit Gundam" from the wildly popular Japanese animation series, and it can be yours for $3 million.
Called ARCHAX after the avian dinosaur archaeopteryx, the robot has cockpit monitors that receive images from cameras hooked up to the exterior so that the pilot can manoeuvre the arms and hands with joysticks from inside its torso.
The 3.5-ton robot, which will be unveiled at the Japan Mobility Show later this month, has two modes: the upright 'robot mode' and a 'vehicle mode' in which it can travel up to 10 km (6 miles) per hour.
"Japan is very good at animation, games, robots and automobiles so I thought it would be great if I could create a product that compressed all these elements into one," said Ryo Yoshida, the 25-year-old chief executive of Tsubame Industries.
"I wanted to create something that says, 'This is Japan'."
Yoshida plans to build and sell five of the machines for the well-heeled robot fan, but hopes the robot could one day be used for disaster relief or in the space industry.
Yoshida became interested in manufacturing at an early age, learning how to weld at his grandfather's ironworks and then going on to found a company that produces myoelectric prosthetic hands. He said he is eager to keep Japan's competitive edge in manufacturing alive.
"I hope to learn from previous generations and carry on the tradition," he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
More Than 40% Of Japanese Companies Have No Plan To Make Use Of AI: Reuters Poll Japan Footballer Kaishu Sano Arrested For Alleged Sex Assault: Reports Japanese AI Startup Turns Dating AI Into Reality World's Largest Isolated Tribe Makes Rare Appearance In New Footage Barack Obama Wants Joe Biden To Pull Out Of US Presidential Race: Report Relationship Timeline Of Hardik Pandya, Wife Who "Parted Ways": 5 Facts NEET PG 2024: Test Cities Out For Postgraduate Medical Entrance Exam After 53 Years, Mortar Shells From 1971 Indo-Pak War Found In Fish Pond "Humanitarian Crisis Due To Israel-Hamas Conflict Concerning": India At UN Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.