I always wonder why those robots have to be humanoid.

I swear I don't need a humanoid robot, give me a proper autonomous robot that cleans your house and I'm more than happy. Could be 40 cm tall, and look like a box, I don't care.

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zarzavat 8 hours ago | parent | next [-]

1. The world is designed for humans. If you need to reach the places humans reach then you need to be the same size as a human.

2. Nature has tested many different form factors and the human form dominated the others.

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jasondigitized 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Ask a plumber what he thinks about reaching places human reach. Nature tested what exactly? Birds and spiders are sub optimal?

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epolanski 7 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

But this is all based on the idea we need generic robots when we really need specialized ones.

It's like skipping making kitchen blenders and vacuum cleaners and instead building a robot that will be mixing stuff manually or using a broom.

Manufacturing, where 90% of the process is generally automated has countless specialized ones. It would not make sense to put generic ones there, because humans really are doing very specific work in manufacturing.

	▲	sejje 6 hours ago \| parent [-]
		I agree there's a great market for specialized ones. I own some of those, like a vacuum bot. But the generic robot is the endgame. I think Musk tries to achieve the endgame, probably too soon. FSD, interplanetary travel, etc

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AlexandrB 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

1 is the real reason. 2 is really down to things like a big brain and opposable thumbs. Our trunk/legs are evolved for persistence hunting and long distance walking - activities that drive approximately 0% of the economy at this point. If robots didn't have to navigate an environment built for bipeds, other configurations would be far more reliable/efficient.

For instance: a quadruped base can be statically stable in case of power loss - a biped really can't.

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rsync 5 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

“I always wonder why those robots have to be humanoid.“

You are correct to wonder this and almost every use case for a robot will be optimized to a non-human form factor.

Certainly there are tasks - like BJJ training partner - that require a human form factor. Almost everything else, including general, purpose, helper, robot, will be cheaper and more extensible in a non-human form factor.

One of your children remarked that nature has experimented with form factors and humans have won… To which I would point out that the upright, bipedal, form factor arose from the limits of oxygen processing, and heat dissipation… Neither limitation will be encountered in the same way with a robot…

… or perhaps I would point out that nature has, indeed, experimented with form factors and ants won - by a very large margin.

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xxs 6 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

instead, sub 12cm disc shaped ones are rather well understood and perform well. They suck opening doors though - but the 40cm one would have a similar issue.

Besides that: I, personally, am totally fine with the current state of the technology.