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What is the uncanny valley?
Quick answer
The uncanny valley is the eerie, unsettling feeling people get from a robot or animation that looks almost — but not quite — human. As realism rises, comfort grows, then suddenly plunges near imperfect human likeness before recovering for the truly lifelike.
Key things to understand
- Coined by roboticist Masahiro Mori in 1970 to describe a dip in emotional comfort.
- Likability climbs with realism, drops sharply at 'almost human,' then rises again for the flawless.
- Subtle wrongness — dead eyes, off timing, stiff motion — triggers unease, perhaps a threat or disease instinct.
- It's a constant challenge for CGI films, video games, and humanoid robots.
People also ask
Why do almost-human faces feel creepy?
Tiny mismatches in eyes, expression, or motion clash with our finely tuned face perception, signaling that something is subtly 'wrong.'
How do creators avoid the uncanny valley?
They either stylize characters to look clearly non-human (like Pixar) or push for flawless realism, avoiding the unsettling middle ground.
Who discovered the uncanny valley?
Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori described it in 1970, and the idea became influential in robotics and computer graphics.
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