The Princess Royal enjoyed a royal meeting with a twist when she shook hands with a robot.
The futuristic meet and greet took place in South Korea where Anne in on a three-day official trip.
She watched as the state of the art machine ran speedily back and forth in a demonstration at a smart mobility laboratory at Korea University in Seoul.
The robot also gave the princess a wave, prompting a smile from the King’s sister.
Anne was said to be extremely interested to talk about AI, and heard how the robot learns movement from trial and error, as well as simulation.
Wearing navy blue day gloves, the princess leaned forward to greet the robot with a handshake.
Anne, who was accompanied by her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, also saw demonstrations of a dual-arm robot and a motion capture system.
She was visiting the university to see examples of British-Korean academic, industrial and research collaboration in science and technology.
Yesterday, The Princess Royal honoured the sacrifice of soldiers who fought in the Battle of Imjin River as she began an official tour.
She left a wreath of red flowers at the base of a lion statue in honour of fallen British servicemen during a poignant service commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Imjin River conflict – the bloodiest engagement endured by the British Army since the Second World War.
The King’s sister also personally laid a single white chrysanthemum on the grave of Private Martin Hogan, who served in the British Army’s Black Watch, marking the anniversary of his death aged 19 on July 14 1952.
The princess later had an audience with South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung at his Cheongwadae residence – also known as the Blue House – in Seoul.
And at a reception in the capital celebrating the UK’s ties to the republic, Anne met members of the K-Pop band NMIXX, with whom the British Embassy has a girls’ empowerment partnership.
Anne and Sir Tim also visited HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, one of the world’s largest shipbuilders, in Ulsan to hear about the UK–South Korea industrial cooperation in the maritime and defence sectors.
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