El-E retrieved bottles of pills and a water bottle when Margeson pointed to them, but its claw could not get a proper grip on a cell phone.

Like any young creature, however, the robot is designed to learn from its mistakes.

"In this case, it missed the object. It should try again actually, and it should recognize that it didn't succeed," Kemp said.

Formal studies have shown El-E to be an efficient worker. In 127 out of 134 trials (94.8 percent), the robot successfully picked up the requested object.

Kemp and his students have studied the work of service dogs to try to mimic the most useful assistive functions. And while El-E will never be the warm and loving companion that a German shepherd or a Labrador might be, there are efforts to make El-E interactive and at least somewhat anthropomorphic.

When El-E is ready to work, it says: "Waiting for laser command." After the patient points at an object, the robot acknowledges, with the words, "Detected laser pointer." Patients can decide whether El-E should put the object on a table or put it directly in their hands.

"If you look at me, I will deliver to your hand," says the robotic voice.

Glass said that many ALS patients have, by necessity, learned to be tech savvy.

"For the most part, patients at this stage of the disease are used to dealing with technology," he said. "They're used to dealing with motorized wheelchairs; they are used to dealing with automatic speaking devices and computers."

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