Hotels Are Staffing Robots—and Guests Are Freaking Out
Hotels are turning to humanoid robots, with guests either loving or hating the creepy, human-like experience.
Hotels around the world are increasingly utilizing humanoid robots to check guests in, answer questions, and reduce staffing costs.
While some travelers embrace the high-tech experience, others feel uneasy, especially when robots appear too human.
Despite technical glitches and guest complaints, the hospitality robot market is booming, with an expected value of surpassing $2 billion by 2030.
A TikTok video went viral on Monday, showing a woman laughing nervously as she backs away from a humanoid robot at Japan’s Henn-na Hotel.
“Don’t look at me,” she said, as the machine watched her. The scene underscores growing fears that robots are replacing humans in the workplace.
The awkward check-in has racked up hundreds of thousands of views and tapped into a deeper fear: robots that are a little too human.
This is a new era and robots have come to stay. My dear is that it will create a lot of unemployment.
Kind of creepy looking things, I'm with the folks that would rather have a regular looking bot.