What if you lived in the Star Wars universe? You’d travel by starship. Your friends would come from distant planets. And droids would be part of your everyday life.
What is a droid? In Star Wars, a droid is a special kind of robot, one that can “think” on its own and do all sorts of complicated jobs. Droids have what is known as artificial intelligence (AI), which means they can perform tasks that normally require human intelligence. They can see, speak, listen, make decisions, and translate languages.
Star Wars droids operate at all levels of society. They are pilots, mechanics, surgeons, waiters, soldiers, and beloved friends. Many of the droids in Star Wars—like BB-8, C-3PO, and R2-D2—have unique and adorable personalities.
But could such droids ever exist in the real world? In some ways, they already do.