Unexpectedly, a robot employed by the Gumi City Council in South Korea has ignited a nationwide discussion following what some are referring to as the country’s initial “robot suicide.”
The event occurred last Thursday at approximately 4 pm, leaving the community bewildered and grieving.
The robot, known as the ‘Robot Supervisor,’ was found in a pile at the base of a stairwell connecting the first and second floors of the council building.
Onlookers observed the robot exhibiting unusual behavior, “pacing in a single spot as if something was present,” before its unfortunate fall.
City council officials promptly reacted by stating that they had gathered pieces of the broken robot for analysis. The reason for the robot’s fall is still unknown, but the incident has raised concerns about the robot’s workload and its potential consequences.
Since August 2023, this hardworking mechanical assistant has been a versatile asset. It has been responsible for tasks such as delivering documents, promoting the city, and providing information to residents at the city hall.
With its own civil service officer card, the robot worked tirelessly from 9 am to 6 pm, utilizing elevators to move between floors – a unique capability among robots of its kind.
Manufactured by Bear Robotics, a California-based startup known for creating robot waiters, the robot at Gumi City Council had a wider range of responsibilities compared to its counterparts in restaurants.
This initiative was part of a pioneering effort in South Korea, a country with a high robot density, with one industrial robot for every ten employees, according to the International Federation of Robotics.
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