‘Robotic’ China restaurant boss mimics android to serve delighted customers, goes viral globally
- Trained dancer even manages to stop blinking during impersonation
- Fascinated social media observers vow to visit hotpot restaurant
As debate rages over the ability of artificial intelligence, or AI, to replace human jobs, a hotpot restaurant owner in China has taken things to a new level.
The eatery entrepreneur in Chongqing municipality in the southwest of the country has become an online sensation with her innovative impersonation of a robot waitress.
Her unique performance, captured in a series of viral videos, shows her adopting robot-like mechanical movements to serve customers.
One of the online videos features her robotically serving a dish to a table set with a spicy hotpot soup base, duck intestines, ham and vegetables.
From robotically waving to greet guests at the entrance, to mechanically serving dishes, pouring tea and making toasts, her performance has confused viewers, many of whom think she is a real robot.