Mindar

Mindar was designed through a collaboration between staff of Kōdai-ji and roboticists from Osaka University, including Hiroshi Ishiguro.

Gotō Tenshō, then the temple's chief steward, suggested to Ishiguro the creation of a robotic Buddha statue.

[4] The Android Kannon Production Committee was established in September 2017 and included staff from Kōdai-ji as well as engineers from Osaka University.

The subject matter of Mindar's sermon was determined by Buddhist monks of the Rinzai school—Honda Dōryū of Baishō-in [ja], Sakaida Taisen of Kennin-ji, and Unrin'in Sōseki of Reigen-in.

They devised a narrative explaining the Buddhist concepts of compassion and emptiness, based on works by Hajime Nakamura and Mumon Yamada.

[b] Mindar is not powered by artificial intelligence, though the designers originally had aspirations of endowing the android with machine-learning capabilities.

It has a slender mechatronic body made from aluminum with silicone skin covering its face, hands, and shoulders.

[7] The top of Mindar's skull is exposed, showing blinking lights and wires within its cranial cavity.

[14] Mindar gives a 25-minute sermon in Japanese on the Heart Sutra,[11] addressing concepts of compassion and emptiness within Buddhism.

[13] Media coverage focused on the novelty of a robot preacher, the cost of the project, and the potential for Mindar to change perceptions about Buddhism in Japan.

[13] Several people who have listened to Mindar's sermon have cried, with some considering the shadow cast by the android to be the "real" Kannon.

[16] A 2023 paper in the Journal of Experimental Psychology describes a field study based on interviews with people who had heard Mindar's sermon.