The Scenarios
The Hidden Past
We know, through archaeological records of ancient technologies, that there was a critical transition from using tools, a widespread animal behaviour, to making tools. Around 3.3 million years ago, our hominin ancestors made the first tools, creating simple stones with sharp edges.
Tools for Inventing Tools
Tool invention is an outstanding technological milestone in human history. If we understand these processes, a similar breakthrough can be envisioned in engineering.
The Wider Context
Eight projects have been funded by the European Innovation Council (EIC) to develop technologies based on awareness principles that will feed novel engineered complex systems, that are more resilient, self-developing and human-centric.
This challenge places awareness as a prerequisite for real and contextualised problem-solving and action adaptation (and their consequences) to specific circumstances.
Awareness matters
Awareness and self-awareness may serve to provide a human-aligned, coherent and purposeful behaviour, learning, adaptation, and self-development of intelligent systems over longer periods.
Ricardo Sanz, the project leader of MetaTool: "Autonomous machines shall have a better perception of their environment and capabilities, and awareness technologies will be a step forward."