Mario cost a staggering £3.5million to create and was funded by an an EU grant.
Its creators say Mario is “patient and does not mind asking the same questions more than once” and has an ability to “pick up on the moods” of those he is working with.
As the numbers of dementia sufferers increases each year scientists hope the EU project can “provide an important addition in the care for people suffering from dementia, given that their number has been increasing constantly.”
Mario was designed to be able to show pictures and play music to patients.
The robot moves around on wheels and has sensors and cameras but still has huge limitations.
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Mario cannot lift patients because he has no arms, which are still too expensive to produce, despite the vast grant given and would need to call a doctor for assistance if it is needed.
German students at the University of Passau in Bavaria helped build the machine.
In Bavaria around 230,000 people over 90-years-old, suffers from dementia.
The Bavarian Ministry for Health expected this number to increase to 270,000 by 2020 and 340,000 by 2032.
Siegfried Handschuh, from the University of Passau who worked on the project, said in his experience patients wish to be independent for as long as possible, which is something he believes can be made possible with the development of this robot.
Handschuh and his team have been in charge of the software which enables Mario to speak to his patients and that the robot can be taught different phrases so it can be individually adapted to the person it is taking care of.
The project, which has been running for three years, is due to end in January 2018 after which the French partner responsible for production will decide if the product will go to market.