Robots, you either love them or you don’t trust them. In the last 25 years, advancements in robotics have taken us to new heights. We have robot waiters and automatic vacuums and mops, and even whole warehouses that make our favorite products all run by machinery.
It’s all very convenient in this age where no one has time to do anything. And though I am not too trusting of the romantic notions of a world one day taken over by robots, I think I can trust them to deliver my food.
A recent Twitter post by @FilmThePoliceLA proves robots will stop at nothing to finish their mission. The video posted shows a small vehicular robot that’s on a food delivery. Though the sidewalk has a few people lingering in its way, even a man with a tripod and large camera, the little bot still tries to pass.
But that’s not what has some people questioning the robot’s abilities to head safety warnings.
Past these few people, the section of the road and sidewalk beyond is taped off with police tape. Police cars block the entrance to the road and there is obviously something serious happening. No one else is in the middle of the crime scene save a huddle of police nearby. That doesn’t seem to matter to our silver friend he readjusts a few times and then continues to try to get through. With the aid of an onlooker who lifts the “DO NOT CROSS” tape the little bot eventually crosses the road.
Once on the other side, the huddle of police individuals seems just as surprised as the rest of us as the silver box continues meandering down the sidewalk. The clip ends there but the response from Uber and news outlets certainly doesn’t.
Gizmodo reports that the crime the bot passed through was actually a suspected shooting at a local high school. The Uber Eats robot caused quite a stir at the time and the company did respond stating they believed the bot was being waved through. This is interesting considering there is clearly no one waving through anything or anyone in the scene.
The company continues to go on to say “Serve’s standard operating procedure is to reroute and not cross barrier tapes,” but it still did…and the excuse they believed the bot was being waved through sounds just as believable as someone saying the ocean is filled with machinal penguins.
It poses a real question as to if little bots like these are actually programmed to ignore safety regulations in favor of making the consumer happy. I am all for getting my food while it’s still hot but I’d rather my chicken nuggets not be the reason people become endangered in certain situations.
