The 20th Exhibition of Research, Technology and Techmarket kicked off in Tehran

Yusef Jalali 
Press TV, Tehran

Say hello to Surena, an Iranian-made humanoid that is sociable and highly literate. The robot has taken four years to be developed. It stands 170 centimeters tall, weighs 70 kilograms and is able to walk at the speed of 700 meters per hour. It can easily move on even and rough surfaces and is capable of lifting objects, recognizing faces and playing soccer!

Its designers say the International Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers has placed Surena among the five prominent robots of the world after analyzing its performance.

Surena was unveiled at the inauguration of the 20th Exhibition of Research, Technology and Techmarket.

3,000 other products on par with Surena were also put on display and are due to be assigned to relative investors for commercialization.

Experts say following the US’s sanctions, Iran has lost a great part of its share in the global oil market. Something which has prompted the country to pay an increased attention to research and development as a tailwind that can push the country’s economy forward amid the US’s economic pressures.

Now, during this expo Surena and dozens of other innovative ideas will meet the industry with the hope of replacing oil in spinning the wheels of Iran’s economy.

For decades, Iran's economy has heavily relied on oil revenues. That is why it is easily affected by fluctuations in oil prices as well as political disputes and sanctions. Marketable research is where Iranian officials have pinned their hopes on as a way out from an oil-based economy.

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