It was only a matter of time before humans had to face off against technology.
But what people may not have expected was for humanity’s first great fight to be a… comical one.
On 11 April 2021, a food delivery rider posted a video on TikTok, sharing his historic fight with a rival delivery rider: the ever-charismatic FoodBot that serves primarily National Technological University (NTU).
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However, instead of taking on the challenge like a man, the autonomous food delivery robot opted to make a swift getaway, flashing a cheeky grin as it did so.
Talk about a much-hyped fight with disappointing results.
Human GrabFood Delivery Rider Jokingly Confronts NTU Food Delivery Robot; Challenges It to a Fight
According to Mothership, the eternal rivals first crossed paths outside Nanyang Executive Centre, located on the Nanyang Technological University campus.
After going through an intense stare down for some eight seconds, during which the human counterpart stated that he was the one delivering food here, the T-9000 made its move.
“Hello, hello?” the human said, possibly threatened by the suspiciously confident look on the robot’s forefront. “You want fight? You want fight? You want fight?”
But it soon became apparent that the Foodbot was not looking for a fight.
“Why? Come here ah. Fight ah. Where are you going? Oi! Oi!” the human called.
Before long, the robot was well on its way onto the pavement. And to add insult to injury, it even flashed its backside at the human, revealing a rather tempting ‘20% off’ promotional venture.
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In response, the human could only sigh. “Alamak…” he said.
You can view the adorable video here and here.
Thus far, the Tik Tok video has garnered over 7.5K likes and 125 comments.
Netizens have also largely taken to the robot, stating that it was “innocent” and “cute”.
One, however, had a dark prediction in mind.
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“Someone’s definitely gonna bring that home soon,” the Netizen wrote.
FoodBots
According to a media release, the machines are known as FoodBots, and are created by a NTU student start-up called Whizz Mobility.
From June 2020 to February 2021, they are said to have transported over 6,000 food orders on the campus.
Each robot is capable of carrying up to 50KG, and can move at 5km/h.
In total, there are five operational models.
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They are equipped with a camera, which students use to monitor them in real-time.
So far, the robots have had zero collisions.
Technology
Though the aforementioned fight between human and robot may be a humorous take, one can’t deny the advancements, and emergence, of technology.
Over in China, a Tech company has come up with the mechanical version of a canine: AlphaDog.
Apart from behaving really similarly to a real dog, they are also absent of any major toilet incidents, and can even move at a speed of almost 15 kilometres per hour.
Meanwhile, other robotic aspects in Singapore include the likes of cleaning robots.
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They were also designated the tasks of sending parcels and groceries, as well as food deliveries.
In addition, they have been deployed for false ceiling inspections, mapping of mosquitoes and, curiously, the turn-away of pigeons and mynahs.
Scientists at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) have even managed to link up plants to special electrodes, thus creating potential ‘robo-plants’.
Sure, robots may still be relatively harmless now.
But as we enter a technological era, one can’t help but wonder what the future will have in store for us.
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And whether our rice bowls will still be intact, or ‘usurped’ by cute-sy looking robots with derpy grins.
Featured Image: Tik Tok (_aimalmustakim_)
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