Staff members at a restaurant in Cupertino, California, were forced to physically restrain a humanoid robot after it began wildly flailing its arms and smashing dishware during a performance.
TechCrunch reports that a humanoid robot performing at a hot pot restaurant in Cupertino, California, created a chaotic scene when it began moving erratically, breaking plates and scattering chopsticks across the dining area. The incident required at least three employees to physically restrain the machine as it continued to swing its arms unpredictably.
Video footage of the incident was posted on Xiaohongshu, a Chinese social networking platform. The video shows multiple staff members struggling to control the robot while one employee appeared to be checking her phone, possibly attempting to access an application to control the humanoid robot. The robot appears to be an AgiBot X2 model, which was showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.
The situation raised immediate safety concerns given the nature of hot pot dining, which involves serving extremely hot soup in bowls at the table used to cook raw meat. Beyond the inconvenience of broken dishware, the potential for the robot to knock over containers of boiling broth posed a serious burn risk to nearby customers. Additionally, the robot’s uncontrolled movements created the possibility of blunt-force injuries to diners and staff.
It remains unclear whether the staff knew how to operate a kill switch for the robot, if one existed. The employees’ apparent difficulty in shutting down the machine suggests a possible gap in training or emergency procedures for handling such situations.
In response to the incident, the restaurant provided a statement to NBC News addressing the event but disputed characterizations of the robot as malfunctioning. “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 restaurant chain stated. “The limited space affected its movement during the performance.”
The restaurant industry has seen growing interest in robotic assistance and automation. Several companies are developing solutions for food service applications. Shin Starr is working on fully autonomous kitchen systems, while Pudu Robotics has created the BellaBot, a cat-themed robot designed to escort customers to tables and deliver food orders. The BellaBot’s design notably lacks arms, which may present fewer safety risks compared to humanoid models.
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Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
