Dancing robot smashes dishes at Haidilao restaurant, raising questions about robot safety

Employees had to restrain a dancing humanoid robot after it went wild at a California restaurant | TechCrunch

When we think about the existential threats of new technology, we're usually thinking about something like the recent negotiations between Anthropic and the Pentagon over how AI can be used in the military. It's terrifying to think about -- how long will it be before a nuclear weapon can be detonated without any human intervention? We've been spending so much time thinking about these potential catastrophes that we haven't braced ourselves for the more immediate danger in our midst: dancing robots. A dancing robot at the hot pot restaurant Haidilao in Cupertino, California, boogied a little too hard, got too close to a table, and started smashing plates and sending dishware and chopsticks everywhere, prompting the restaurant's staff to intervene, according to a video posted on the Chinese social network Xiaohongshu by user Meooow. From what we can see from the video, at least three employees struggled to restrain the robot as it flung its arms around. One Haidilao employee seems to be looking at her phone, perhaps in an attempt to toggle something on an app controlling the robot. It's possible the robot -- which appears to be an AgiBot X2 robot, which was featured at the CES conference in January -- has a kill switch, but the staff might not have known how to operate it. If you're not familiar with hot pot, you should know that, as its name suggests, it involves very hot pots of soup. No one likes spilled food, but if the robot were to knock piping bowls of bone broth over, it wouldn't just be a culinary disaster, it might seriously burn someone. Not to mention any potential blunt-force damage from the now-moshing automaton. When The Killers sang "Are we human or are we dancer," we did not realize they were asking us to take a stand in the future robot wars. Haidilao confirmed the mechanical contretemps in a statement to NBC News, but denied the robot was "malfunctioning or out of control." "In this case, the robot was brought closer to a dining table at a guest's request, which is not its typical operating setting," the Chinese chain of hot pot restaurants told NBC News in a statement. "The limited space affected its movement during the performance." AgiBot did not immediately respond to TechCrunch's request for comment. Haidilao has experimented with a "smart restaurant" in Beijing, which used robotic servers and broth mixing machines. It seems that this Haidilao restaurant was just using this robot for entertainment purposes, but things got out of hand when it danced a little too close to customers. Many startups are working on bringing robots to the food service industry, like Shin Starr, which is working on making fully autonomous kitchens. Pudu Robotics' BellaBot, a cutesy, cat-like robot, can direct customers to their seats and bring out their food when it's done. Maybe that's safer than humanoid robots, for now at least -- the BellaBot does not have any limbs.

Dancing robot busts a move, and dishes, after going rogue at California hotpot restaurant

A dancing robot went wild at a California hotpot restaurant, smashing dishes and sending chopsticks flying instead of doing the robot. The robot was captured on video at the Haidilao location approaching the table before pounding on it, then knocking over utensils and food in front of customers. Servers can be seen struggling to restrain the robot while it wildly dances. Eventually, three servers are needed to hold onto the robot by a strap on its neck, pulling it away from tables as it continues to shuffle its feet and gesticulate. The restaurant chain said in a statement to NBC News that the robot "was not malfunctioning or out of control." Haidilao said that the movements performed by the robot in Cupertino are pre-programmed, but were taking place in "a closer-than-usual setting." "In this case, the robot was brought closer to a dining table at a guest's request, which is not its typical operating setting," the statement said. "The limited space affected its movement during the performance." Haidilao has long embraced artificial intelligence and robotics in its restaurants around the world, including in their smart restaurant in Beijing, which features robot servers and automatic broth mixing machines. The robot in the video is part of the restaurant's in-store service and entertainment setup, programmed to bust a move for customers at the restaurant chain. NBC News Chief Tech Analyst Joanna Stern said that this robot should have a kill switch, yet the servers in the video do not seem to know how to operate it. "I wouldn't worry too much about this robot sort of going rogue and leaving the restaurant and doing anything. I think it's just much more of a physical fear here," Stern said.