Researchers are building robots sympathetic and sensitive enough to serve as both therapists and playmates to kids with autism.

For example, a robot named Bandit is being programmed by University of Southern California researchers to perform simple facial expressions and movements, and researchers are working to give the robot the ability to make complex decisions in response to the child’s behavior. This way, Bandit and robots like it could draw socially detached kids into simple games, like Simon Says or hide-and-seek and, ultimately, social activities with people.

There is increasing evidence that kids with autism respond more naturally to machines than they do to people because robots are predictable, unlike people.