In the most startling of stories, authorities claimed that a robot public servant from South Korea “committed suicide” when it threw itself down a flight of stairs for unknown reasons.
The Daily Mail said that the Gumi City Council declared the robot inoperable after it was discovered broken and strewn in the stairway situated between the building’s first and second floors, following its fall down a two-meter staircase.
This robot, which has been in operation since August 2023, was created to carry out a number of jobs that are usually done by human workers, like delivering documents, promoting the city, and informing locals. This model, created by California-based startup Bear Robotics, was different from the company’s typical restaurant service robots since it was assigned a broader and possibly more challenging collection of obligations.
The event raises a number of concerns about the integration of robots into regular work situations, as reported by witnesses who witnessed the robot circle before descending the stairway. The robot’s ability to use elevators to go across levels demonstrated its sophisticated technological capabilities.
However, the collapse has forced the Gumi City Council to gather the remains for examination in order to determine the reason, temporarily stopping additional robot integrations and causing discussion over the application of such technology in public administration.
There is a lot of conjecture in the local media and online forums right now. Some people are speculating that the robot was “overworked,” which is similar to issues that people encounter at work. Others discuss the ethical and practical ramifications of deploying robots to carry out human-traditional tasks. particularly in a nation where industrial robot densities are among the highest in the world.
According to the International Federation of Robotics, South Korea leads the world in the use of industrial robots, having one robot for every ten workers, making it the country with the highest robot density globally. The Gumi City Council has declared that, in spite of this, it does not currently have any plans to deploy a second robot officer.