robots

When I was a child, I watched “The Jetsons” and “Lost in Space” and imagined my adult self living in a world of high-tech ease: flying cars, self-cleaning rooms, high-speed trains, personal jetpacks and wise-cracking robotic companions capable of solving any problem in a trice.

Instead I got Google (now with an irritating and frequently wrong AI feature), increased gridlock, Roombas, far too many passcodes/two-factor authenticator systems and a bunch of motorized ice chests cluttering up the sidewalks.

The last of which were recently banned, mercifully if temporarily, in Glendale. Reading about the city’s upcoming moratorium on delivery robots, I literally cheered. I hate them so much.

I know, I know, they’re adorable, with their wide “eyes” and squat toddler-like determination as they trundle along, pausing in careful recalculation whenever they encounter a curb, street sign, a sidewalk cafe table. Hating them makes me feel a bit like those folks who ban children from weddings or make snarky comments about dogs showing up just about everywhere (two things I would never do).

A Serve Robotics delivery robot heads to work Feb. 13. They navigate autonomously using LiDAR and only require human intervention if they get stuck, damaged or are heavily vandalized.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

But though I am happy to accommodate dog walkers, stroller-pushers and other slow-moving/space-requiring pedestrians, I am less happy to do so for a tricked-out little metal box as it picks its way over potholes and sidewalk cracks on a “heroic” mission to deliver takeout to someone who, presumably, lives less than a mile away from its source.

And it isn’t just cranky-pants impatience. I recently became part of a face-off between two opposite-running Coco bots on the small strip of sidewalk in front of Cafe Figaro. The minutes-long standstill forced several people into the street; many more, including my husband and his cane, engaged in a potentially perilous stutter-step around the two knee-high, randomly moving yet noncommunicative vehicles.

One of which was, for reasons of its own, sporting an American flag — maybe it wants to be a Mars rover when it grows up.

Delivery bots, including those made by Coco, a company begun in 2020 by two UCLA graduates, have been around for a while. Early rollouts, however, were small and often plagued by trouble. Stranded or struggling robots became the new Bird scooters — nifty ideas that proved more problematic in practice.

In the last two years, however, improved models have become an increasing presence; Coco, which has expanded across the country, recently announced a bigger, bolder next-gen model.

The Coco 1, left, alongside the new Coco 2 (Next-Gen) at the Coco Robotics headquarters in February in Venice. Coco Robotics launched its next-generation, fully autonomous delivery robot, Coco 2.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Many people love Coco and other delivery robots, which partially replace traffic-clogging, exhaust-spewing delivery drivers with a more environmentally friendly alternative.

Others do not, viewing the bots as sidewalk lice that create hazards and take jobs from humans. Several cities, including Chicago, Toronto and San Francisco, have already instituted bans; Glendale is, as Long Beach recently did, taking a less draconian approach, putting the robots on pause while city officials figure out a regulatory framework.

Good luck with that. The e-bike craze, which is putting many people, including kids, in the hospital at an alarming rate, has thus far defied similar regulatory frameworks. As with delivery robots, the possible benefits of e-bikes — environmentally friendly, traffic-decreasing, super fun to ride — created a demand that ignores the dangers created by popularity.

Unlike e-bikes, or the electric scooters that preceded them, delivery robots aren’t yet causing widespread physical harm. Even my own feelings for those motorized metal coolers are fueled by existential disappointment as much as personal irritation.

In many ways, the high-tech future I envisioned as a child has come to pass — we have computers in our pockets, driverless cars, thumbprint and face ID, and voice-activated remote controls for everything. We may not be able to teleport, either physically or via hologram, but we can Zoom or video chat with pretty much anyone anywhere. ChatGPT is not exactly J.A.R.V.I.S., but it’s something. High-speed trains, and pretty much any mass transportation improvement, continue to elude the United States, but one can experience them elsewhere.

Matt Wood, Serve Robotics supervisor, drives a robot to a holding area earlier this year in the company’s parking lot where it and 26 others were to be transported by delivery truck to a farther service location.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

The problem is, of course, that reality is much more complicated than futuristic visions sold by “The Jetsons,” “Minority Report” or the cultural marketers of Silicon Valley. Like e-bikes, every advancement creates a host of new problems — hackers, identity theft, system failures, increased energy demands. Labor-saving devices are rarely that — instead labor is shifted, from one department to another, from the body to the brain, or standards are raised — when laundry is done by a machine, its operator must ensure that all clothing is bright, soft, sweet smelling and stain-free just as those who have been given a company smartphone must be available 24/7. After all, how hard is it to answer a text?

Delivery robots are both disappointing in their reality and alarming in their symbolic implication. With all manner of industries constricting and AI threatening entry-level positions, many people have become delivery drivers, full-time or as an economically necessary side gig. Are robots coming for them as well? And are we all going to step around them and post photos on Instagram as they do?

It’s a lot to put on a relatively new and small industry that remains, thus far, a cute and novel way to receive a salad or a few groceries. Those who fear imminent robotic world domination can actually take heart — like the AI actor Tilly Norwood, these little geezers have limited abilities. They don’t go very far, or move very fast; they are easily damaged and disabled (especially in Philadelphia). If they are the vanguard of a sentient nonhuman enemy, we don’t have much to fear yet.

Still, as these robots grow in number and size, those big innocent “eyes” and the cutesy design take on an unnerving air. As Albert Brooks said in “Broadcast News”: “What do you think the devil is going to look like if he’s around … he will be attractive, he’ll be nice and helpful.”

And deliver your lunch.

One hotel is offering a unique experience when it comes to its check-in staff. Instead of humans, guests at the hotel are greeted by robot dinosaurs to help them check-in to their room

Most of us like to encounter unique experiences when we travel, and one hotel based in Japan is certainly offering that with its check-in staff. Instead of humans, guests at the hotel are greeted by robot dinosaurs to help them check-in to their room. The unique experience was shared over on Instagram, with influencer Anna-Lynne posting a reel about it. Her video saw her walk in to a ocean-themed room as robot dinosaurs greeted her at the check-in desk.

Overlay text read, ‘POV, it’s 8pm in Japan, you’re tired and you just want to check in to your hotel…’ Following up in the caption, she wrote: “Booked this stay not knowing I’d be checked in by dinosaurs and low-key, I was terrified.

It was 8pm, I was exhausted after a flight, and I had to walk from the train station in pitch dark just to get here. Then these prehistoric receptionists welcome me and I was like uhhh the f**k.

“But real talk they were somehow more polite than some humans I know. The check-in was smooth, and this place is super clean and quirky in the best way.”

The hotel in question is Henn na Resort & Spa Kansai Airport in Japan.

The unique, high-tech hotel in the Izumisano area is famous for being the world’s first hotel brand staffed primarily by robots, including dinosaur receptionists.

It is located along the coast with scenic views of Osaka Bay and airplanes landing at the nearby airport.

As well as guests being greeted and checked in by multilingual dinosaur robots in the ocean-themed lobby, they can also make use of many facilities such as indoor and open-air baths with bay views, a mineral mist sauna, and a dry sauna.

The on-site restaurant, Seian (Aoi-an), serves Japanese cuisine made with local ingredients and is supervised by a Michelin 1-star chef.

In addition to standard rooms, the hotel offers unique concept rooms like Ninja, Pirate, and Peach Aviation collaboration.

The hotel is approximately 15 minutes by car or one train stop (6 minutes) from Kansai International Airport (KIX). It is a 10-minute walk from Rinku Town Station.

Attractions nearby include Rinku Premium Outlets, Rinku Park, and the Seacle shopping mall, which are all within walking distance.

The hotel is often highly praised for its magnificent views, clean modern rooms, and the fun novelty of the robot staff. However, some guests found the walk from the station difficult with heavy luggage and noted that the automated check-in may occasionally require human assistance.

People were loving the look of the robot dinosaur staff from Anna-Lynne’s video, with it racking up more than 811,000 likes.

One person exclaimed: “Wait this is so epic.”

While another added: “My introverted self would prefer the awkward robot dinosaurs.”

However, many others predicted they’d encounter a few issues too.

“Lol, this would send me over the edge of laughter and despair,” one person wrote.

While another added: “Imagine trying to complain about room service and staying serious.”