From Medieval automatons to the programmed machine tools of the 19th and 20th centuries, humans have never stopped inventing ways to simplify living. Programmed for all sorts of purposes, from agriculture to space exploration to the factories that manufacture all our products, robots have become indispensable in our daily lives. Now capable of reacting to the unexpected, they even intervene in hospitals and schools. But although we may feel for them, robots will never feel emotions themselves. What does the future hold for the machines among us?