Humanoid Robot News

[kernals12]

Yesterday, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang announced his company was putting out an AI platform for robots. It would seem the age of household robots is coming soon.

In the same keynote address, Huang announced his company was working with Disney to deploy robots at its theme parks starting next year.

Mercedes is testing humanoid robots in its factories

And a bunch of companies have shown demonstrations of working humanoids

https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/a-softer-humanoid-robot-for-the-home/

https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3302868/chinese-robotics-firm-shenzhen-dobot-excites-investors-us27500-humanoid

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/02/dangling-twitching-human-robot-with-synthetic-muscles-makes-its-debut/

[Max Rockatansky]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

[SectorZ]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

[Scott5114]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

[vdeane]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

Lots of reasons for a robot to be humanoid.  Let's look at one scenario:

1. Infiltrate the humans.
2. Seduce the man who wrote the military's navigation program.
3. Have the man get you access to the defense mainframe.
4. Disable the fleet.
5. Destroy the 12 Colonies.

[kernals12]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

[Max Rockatansky]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

Lots of reasons for a robot to be humanoid.  Let's look at one scenario:

1. Infiltrate the humans.
2. Seduce the man who wrote the military's navigation program.
3. Have the man get you access to the defense mainframe.
4. Disable the fleet.
5. Destroy the 12 Colonies.

The sexy humanoid female Cylons in the remake of Battle Star Gallactica was a lot better plot point than the lizard-robot thing that was going on in late 70s version. 

[kphoger]

The sexy humanoid female Cylons in the remake of Battle Star Gallactica was a lot better plot point than the lizard-robot thing that was going on in late 70s version. 

lizard people robots, yeah!

[SectorZ]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Eh I think I like my theory better.

[Max Rockatansky]

The sexy humanoid female Cylons in the remake of Battle Star Gallactica was a lot better plot point than the lizard-robot thing that was going on in late 70s version. 

lizard people robots, yeah!

I guess lizard people were all the rage back then?  V the Final Battle came out a couple years later. 

[Scott5114]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Or I could get separate robots for each task, that each do one thing and do it well, rather than one single robot that does everything kind of okayish. The same way I don't throw my dishes in the washing machine, I have a separate dishwasher for that. The benefit of this approach is that if the Roomba is broken, my dishes still get cleaned.

[Max Rockatansky]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Eh I think I like my theory better.

It sounds like he's describing a stereotypically 1950s housewife.  Essentially I'm gathering this is what the end vision is:

https://thejetsons.fandom.com/wiki/Rosey

[kernals12]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Or I could get separate robots for each task, that each do one thing and do it well, rather than one single robot that does everything kind of okayish. The same way I don't throw my dishes in the washing machine, I have a separate dishwasher for that. The benefit of this approach is that if the Roomba is broken, my dishes still get cleaned.

A robot able to prepare a meal will have the dexterity needed to clean rooms and do laundry so you might as well have it all in one device.

I remember when people owned digital cameras, GPS devices, MP3 players, PDAs, and portable game consoles, now your cell phone takes care of all of that.

[kernals12]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Eh I think I like my theory better.

It sounds like he's describing a stereotypically 1950s housewife.  Essentially I'm gathering this is what the end vision is:

https://thejetsons.fandom.com/wiki/Rosey

Yes, that's exactly what I want. You being you, I assume you think I'm weird for that.

[Max Rockatansky]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Eh I think I like my theory better.

It sounds like he's describing a stereotypically 1950s housewife.  Essentially I'm gathering this is what the end vision is:

https://thejetsons.fandom.com/wiki/Rosey

Yes, that's exactly what I want. You being you, I assume you think I'm weird for that.

I guess so?  The amount of laziness you seem crave out of non-existent technology is going to come off as odd likely to many people. 

[kphoger]

A robot able to prepare a meal will have the dexterity needed to clean rooms and do laundry so you might as well have it all in one device.

I might want a robot that can do my laundry but not prepare my meals.

But, in any case, the form of such a multi-tasking robot wouldn't necessarily have to be a human.  In your first link, the two pictures at the top both show robots with four fingers and a thumb on each hand;  why?  And why do they have chests shaped like human chests and upper arms that show bicep bulges?  Are you trying to say that these humanlike features are necessary in order for the robots to do a short list of household chores?  Why not four arms in five segments each?  Why have heads at all?  Etc.

I remember when people owned digital cameras, GPS devices, MP3 players, PDAs, and portable game consoles, now your cell phone takes care of all of that.

A lot of people still own those things separately.  I don't use sat-nav while I'm driving, so why should I want a phone that can do that.  I don't play video games, so why should I want a phone that can do that?

I agree that many people want a device that can do all of those things, and that many people might want a household robot to do all of those other things.  But that doesn't negate the fact that there are also other people who don't.  You can still buy a digital camera, you can still buy a Garmin, you can still buy a digital player, you can still buy a Nintendo Switch, although I'm not sure you can still buy a new non-smartphone-type PDA.

[Scott5114]

A robot able to prepare a meal will have the dexterity needed to clean rooms and do laundry so you might as well have it all in one device.

Except that means you can't, say, have your breakfast cooked and your shirt ironed at the same time. If you had a separate ironbot and cookbot then you could turn them both on at once, and get in your car to go to work with your belly full and your shirt nice and warm.

Moreover, if you're not limited to human anatomy, your bots can get very efficient. An ironbot has no need for dexterity, so it can optimize for space saving or power usage or task time or what have you.

[kernals12]

Why do all these robot concepts end up looking like someone in a gimp suit? 

Because too many of the weirdos that want them will inevitably want to have sex with them. They're just aiming for the target audience.

Why else would you want a robot to be humanoid? Pretty much anything else you would want a robot to do could be more efficiently done in another form (for example, rather than having a humanoid robot pushing a vacuum around, you could just have a Roomba.)

That's fine if you want a robot that only vacuums, but if you want the same robot to pick things up off the floor, go up stairs, clean the sink, fold laundry, and cook meals, then you need to give it arms and legs and you need high mounted optical sensors.

Eh I think I like my theory better.

It sounds like he's describing a stereotypically 1950s housewife.  Essentially I'm gathering this is what the end vision is:

https://thejetsons.fandom.com/wiki/Rosey

Yes, that's exactly what I want. You being you, I assume you think I'm weird for that.

I guess so?  The amount of laziness you seem crave out of non-existent technology is going to come off as odd likely to many people. 

I think 90% of people would love to have a machine that does all their housework.

I might want a robot that can do my laundry but not prepare my meals.

But, in any case, the form of such a multi-tasking robot wouldn't necessarily have to take a human form.  In your first link, the two pictures at the top both show robots with four fingers and a thumb on each hand;  why?  And why do they have chests shaped like human chests and upper arms that show bicep bulges?  Are you trying to say that these humanlike features are necessary in order for the robots to do a short list of household chores?  Why not four arms in five segments each?  Why have heads at all?  Etc.

It's called skeuomorphism

A robot able to prepare a meal will have the dexterity needed to clean rooms and do laundry so you might as well have it all in one device.

Except that means you can't, say, have your breakfast cooked and your shirt ironed at the same time. If you had a separate ironbot and cookbot then you could turn them both on at once, and get in your car to go to work with your belly full and your shirt nice and warm.

Moreover, if you're not limited to human anatomy, your bots can get very efficient. An ironbot has no need for dexterity, so it can optimize for space saving or power usage or task time or what have you.

You live in Las Vegas, why do you need a warm shirt?

[kphoger]

It's called skeuomorphism

Nah.  I'm pretty sure it's about sex.

Admit it:  you've got a thing for Rosie.

You live in Las Vegas, why do you need a warm shirt?

You don't know much about geography, do you?  The average temperature in January at the time most people are leaving for work is around 40°F.

[Max Rockatansky]

The winter morning temperatures in Phoenix and Las Vegas tend to not be all that pleasant.  They are even less pleasant if it is super windy which is a frequent occurrence during winter months.

[kphoger]

You live in Las Vegas, why do you need a warm shirt?

The winter morning temperatures in Phoenix and Las Vegas tend to not be all that pleasant.  They are even less pleasant if it is super windy which is a frequent occurrence during winter months.

I compiled NOAA data for January of the last three years at the Las Vegas airport.

Two-thirds of all January days had a low temp below 42°F.  One-fourth had a low temp below 36°F.

[kernals12]

Admit it:  you've got a thing for Rosie.

I prefer Mac

[kphoger]

I prefer Mac

must.... bite.... tongue....

[Scott5114]

I prefer Mac

Which is funny, because your apparent strong preference toward monolithic design suggests to me that heavy use of Microsoft Windows was a formative part of your childhood.

[hotdogPi]

I prefer Mac

Which is funny, because your apparent strong preference toward monolithic design suggests to me that heavy use of Microsoft Windows was a formative part of your childhood and belief system.

I use Mac and have my entire life. (That said, I do use the command line for job-related purposes. I'm still not that good at it.)