Rice Robotics team up with Floki to launch AI companion robot
Rice Robotics has teamed up with Floki to launch the Minibot M1, which is designed to support everyday tasks and build an emotional connection with users.
Rice Robotics is launching a custom AI-powered companion robot in partnership with Floki.
The Hong Kong-based robotics startup has announced the launch of the Minibot M1, which has been developed in conjunction with Floki.
The robot will operate on the decentralised RICE AI protocol and integrate features designed to support everyday tasks and foster emotional interaction with users.
The Minibot M1 will function as a personal assistant capable of managing household schedules, retrieving online information, and offering companionship through features such as music, storytelling and conversational engagement.
Users who interact with the robot will earn $RICE tokens in return, forming part of a data collection and training ecosystem for robotic intelligence.
The launch of the robot is to be accompanied by the introduction of the $RICE token, which will serve as the utility token of the RICE AI protocol.
The token will debut on TokenFi Launchpad, with staking opportunities available for holders of $TOKEN, the native token of TokenFi. Airdrops of $RICE will also be issued to holders and stakers of both $FLOKI and $TOKEN.
Rice Robotics has partnerships with a number of major corporations including SoftBank, Nvidia, Dubai Future Foundation, NTT Japan and Mitsui Fudosan.
Its robots are currently deployed in delivery settings across Japan, including unmanned indoor delivery for 7-Eleven Japan and office services at SoftBank headquarters.
Floki's involvement in the project marks another step in its strategy to expand into tokenised AI and blockhchain-enabled services. Through sister project TokenFI, Floki aims to facilitate the tokenisation of real-world assets and data, including AI-generated content and robotic learning models.
Rice Robotics secured over $7 million earlier this year in a pre-Series A funding round led by Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Soul Capital and Audacy Ventures.
The company is working towards a decentralised data-sharing model where robots can exchange training data autonomously to improve performance without centralised oversight.
The AI robotics sector is currently valued at approximately $22 billion and is tipped to exceed $100 billion by 2030, according to industry estimations.
The rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into robotics marks a transformative era for interaction between humans and machines – as society enters uncharted territory where robots shift from industrial roles to emotionally responsive companions and personal assistants.
