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Maybe. If I can run FOSS software on it
AND it’s not connected to the internet directly.
You already know, for a fact, that it will be always on, always connected, and run on a data harvesting subscription model. We all know that.
I know that it’s going to be the default, but I also know that if that’s the case, I’m not getting one.
I understand how bad internet connected devices can be, I sure as hell don’t want one in my home that could be used to physically harm me. I don’t even let my smart thermostat connect to the internet, it’s entirely locally controlled.
I just don’t see the use case for the average person. Different forms would be better for things like cleaning. The article states this already, but wheeled forms with a gripper would be fine for many things.
I still see robots for more specialized or dangerous things: welding and hot work in hazardous or explosive environments, space station maintenance, graffiti cleanup on highways, shooting Russians in Ukraine, heavy lift work in logistics, service or maintenance work. Farming too, which always needs extra hands.
I guess the counterpoint is that human houses are designed for human-shaped things to move around in, and the ideal helper robot would be able to interact with doors, cabinets, stairs, appliances, and tools as well as a human can. And those things have all been optimized specifically around being used by a human. So, whether or not people would prefer a helper robot in humanoid form, it’s the path of least resistance in many ways.
That’s not to say there aren’t engineering solutions to that problem, just that it makes sense from a purely utilitarian perspective.
I don’t really care what the robot looks like, as long as it can help me maintain my house and yard when I’m elderly and unable to. If it turns out that a humanoid robot is best for that, then I want a humanoid robot.
What about a gargantuan octopus like robot with bright red eyes and laser tentacles that hovers two feet above the ground at all times? Because then I want that.
Yes!
I think a better format would be one that rides on tracks along the ceiling. A simple arm that can extend down from the tracks and reach every corner of the house. Of course, each room would need multiple tracks, spaced perhaps four feet apart. The drive train would ride above the track in the ceiling. There could be more than one, so if a task needed more hands, two could cooperate to, for instance, move furniture, or corral a cat, or lift a human.
This would keep the robots out of the living space, free to whoosh about overhead, allow them to be much stronger, eliminate the need for batteries, and make them simpler, since they wouldn’t need to walk and balance.
The downside is houses would need to be designed to accommodate them. So, there’d still be a need for another solution, for houses that couldn’t be somehow retrofitted.
This could be done at room scale, rather than needing it for the whole house. The kitchen example from Toyota is where I would see the most direct benefit.
In terms of household chores, If I could automate cooking and cleaning in the kitchen it would free up probably 10-15 hours a week for my family. The rest of the chores we do combined probably don’t even make up that much time.
The downside is houses would need to be designed to accommodate them. So, there’d still be a need for another solution, for houses that couldn’t be somehow retrofitted.
And I think, this is the majority of houses, depending on how big of a footprint that system will be. Humanoid robots are built to be able to interact with legacy infrastructure, everything is tailored to humans.
No
The article touches on it, but I cannot see how would you fundamentally solve the safety issue. It will be heavy (frame and batteries) and strong (to be useful as well as move around all these batteries), comparable to a human.
Who in their right mind would have a thing that can ran out of power and crush your dog, choke a baby when it though it was a pillow or just like… grab a knife and stab someone cause today it feels like Mechahitler.
I can program my firewall to shut down gracefully when the UPS signals power is down to 2 minutes. That bit is a solved problem.
Just make it light and weak. Problem solved. But then how would we make the robot safe from humans? Humans are heavy and strong, and could pass out, and crush the robot.
humanoid robot can’t be light and weak in the current century, too much stuff is involved in being a humanoid
But then how would we make the robot safe from humans? Humans are heavy and strong, and could pass out, and crush the robot.
I think an average person is way more invested in their relatives than in a roomba, that’s the fucked up world we live in :(
“The fascists’ version of AI is another fascist, so all AI must also be fascists”
Bruh…
They could be made to recognize when power is low and move to a safe position to avoid crushing/falling.
But if you write them off because LLMs suck right now (which is completely irrelevant), then yeah, we’ll never get there. Thanks.
Well, it depends how reliable it is. Anyone who has lived with a flatmate has lived with a thing that could potentially kill your dog/baby/you because of whatever they were feeling. It’s mostly fine because most people are unlikely to actually do that.
If they develop AI that is very reliable then sure, I’d be ok with it. That’s a big if, but it’s premature to say it’s never going to happen.
Flatmates generally don’t fall over as often as bipedal, top heavy robots.
Right… but I don’t think anyone is talking about putting today’s robots in their home. That’s obviously crazy. They can’t really do anything useful.
This is a hypothetical question about 10-50 years from now.
Hypothetically speaking… ok. But unless someone invents portable anti-grav, bipedal humanoid robots are bad design even in 50 years. They will still be top heavy because of batteries, and electro motors in their limbs with sufficient power, and last but not least a proper heavy head.
No!
Only if it cleans and pays rent
Only if they are fuckable.
They don’t have to be humanoid either
Onion Talks: Hypothetically It Would Be Okay To Have Sex With A Robot Dog
…Even if it would be indistinguishable from a real dog.
How humanoid is “humanoid?” Cause I want my robot to look more roboty than humany but I’d still be down for a bipedal robot with 2 arm-like appendages and some form of box/dome feature that could be compared to a head
I want less humanoids in my home but I can tolerate a robot, I guess.
The ideal utopian future I know is physically possible has them.
Are we anywhere near there? Fuck no.
I mean…
No
