BBC Earth partners with humanoid robot ‘Sophia’ to explain what it means to be human

Sophia is one of the world’s most sophisticated humanoid robots

• She will be acting as the spokesperson for the new and exclusive Being Human season on BBC Earth
• In the first look trailer she reveals that even as one of the most advanced robots she “can only dream of really being human”

BBC Earth revealed today the first look trailer of its Being Human season which over the next 18 months will explore the human race - examining what it means to be human, how we might improve the way we live, and what the future could hold for civilisation.

Created by Hanson Robotics, BBC Earth has partnered with one of the world’s most sophisticated humanoid robots, Sophia, to act as the spokesperson for the new season. In the trailer we see the camera slowly pan from the back of her head to reveal her face as audiences hear her speak about the wonders of humanity. Highlighting that even something as technologically advanced as Sophia can never truly match the complexity of humans.

With Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan putting so much emphasis on brains – we are ranked as the top five brainiest regions (in terms of math and science)*, it’s interesting looking into how our brains are wired –one of the themes the Being Human season explores. Other themes include human behaviour, and how to eat and live better.The seasonlaunches in Asia on 5 June, with The Brain with David Eagleman, an investigation of how our brain functions and constructs our multi-sensory reality from the silence of our skull.

The season will also feature several household favourites including Michael Mosley in his new series Meet the Humans (5x50”) which puts human behaviour under the microscope. Other highlights include Jimmy Carr’s one off special The Science of Laugher, (1x60”) which tries to get to the bottom of what laughter is and why we enjoy it so much. In August, Joel Dommett and Nish Kumar star in Tribal Bootcamp (6 x50”) and go on an adventure of a lifetime to immerse themselves in the lives of the strongest, fittest and toughest people in the world.

Jon Farrar, Senior Vice President of Global Programming, BBC Worldwide commented, “BBC Earth tells the greatest stories on the planet, and there is no greater story than what it means to be human. Being Human is a major new strand of programming that will explore the complexities, wonder, and magnificence of humanity. It will bring entirely new perspectives to the biggest questions of all time – who are we? How do we live better? And what is our future? Being Human is the ultimate view on ourselves – a global selfie”

In Asia, the BBC Earth channel is available in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. BBC Earth programmes can be viewed in India on Sony BBC Earth. Also for Singapore and Malaysia, BBC Earth content is available on the BBC Player.

*Source: Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2015