Coming around the corner in the grocery store last week I encountered this tall metal object beeping at me. Since I don’t speak robot, I was not sure what I was supposed to do. Was it wanting to go past me? Was I to wait for it to turn the corner? I stared at it for a while and it kept beeping. Deciding it had no better idea than I did about what to do, I moved around it and went on down the next aisle.
This robot is named Marty and comes equipped with googly eyes to make it seem more what? Personable? I found the encounter unsettling and asked at the checkout stand what was the purpose of this roving robot. Apparently it moves up and down the aisles looking for spilled items and then announces–in a robot voice–“clean up in aisle 4.” Previously I saw a disabled young man roving the store with a mop. Perhaps Marty replaced him.
Marty, it turns out, is equipped with a camera. “Only to record if someone kicks him,” I am told. Ha! Call me suspicious, but I doubt it. I guess this “soft” introduction of a robot into a union employee grocery chain is to get us used to mechanical intrusions. The store has failed to convince all of us to check out ourselves, bag our own groceries, pay by credit card, and leave without any human interaction at all. Some of us Luddites still prefer to see a cashier when we buy groceries. But the writing is on the wall, I am afraid.
Maybe I can convince Marty to carry my purchases to the car!
Saved By Words 
Signs of times, we’ll probably get used to those eventually Elizabeth. Good morning!
LikeLike
I will know to walk around him next time.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wonder if he invaded the grocery store.
LikeLike
Oh my! I have yet to meet Marty in my grocery store and don’t look forward to it either. Seems rather strange to me!
LikeLike
I found him creepy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
wow………..robots are going to replace most people when it comes to jobs, sad.
LikeLike
But then how will people have money to spend on the things they produce?
LikeLiked by 1 person
yeah………scary thought.
LikeLike
I know robots, and most computerized things are supposed to improve efficiency, but I’m positive I’m not the only person who is filled with joy when I navigate all the automated questions and finally can speak with a human.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love the web sites which tell you how to skirt the automated prompts to get to a real person.
LikeLike
There must be a lot more clean-ups to clean up in your store than in stores in my neighborhood if a full-time robot (which replaced a disabled young man with a mop) is needed to roam the aisles looking for spills. And “Marty” doesn’t even carry a mop, so the smarty who hired Marty is only getting half the work out of him that the disabled young man did….which leads me to believe that Marty’s principal job is looking for shoplifters. It probably won’t take long for shoplifters to figure that out, so don’t be surprised if you see Marty with a paper bag over his head in aisle 4 next time you go to the store.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I have never noticed any spills in my store before Marty. I think you are on the right track with your suspicions.
LikeLike
Marty’s eyes probably don’t do the ‘seeing,’ so if a shoplifter puts a paper bag over Marty’s head hoping to avoid detection, his/her ass is likely to get ‘pinched.’
LikeLike
I am part of a focus group for “Wally World”, and they are setting up several types of robots with different functions. The one we were discussing would scan shelves for misplaced items and alert employees to move them. We had to come up with ideas for signage for the robot to let shoppers know to leave it alone. It seemed everyone came up with, “This is not the droid you are looking for.”
Several people mentioned that the robots looked like fun targets for bored teenagers.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Do they intend to use them to spot shoplifters?
LikeLike
It wasn’t their stated purpose, but I suspect that plus watching shopper habits or listening to conversations.
LikeLike
HAS THE WORD GONE CRAZY ELIZABETH? DRIVERLESS CARS AND NOW THIS, CHINA
LikeLike
Reblogged this on LIVING THE DREAM.
LikeLike
I refuse to use the ‘self-scan’, or automated checkouts. It is important to keep the jobs, and I prefer to deal with a person at the checkout too. As for ‘robot cleaners’, I think they may be some way off over here. Our national obsession with ‘health and safety’ would worry too much about someone tripping over one, or crashing into it on their electric scooter. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLike
I think the crashes are a real possibility. Either that or being scared to death when the robot comes down the aisle.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My heart hurt a little bit when I read “Previously I saw a disabled young man roving the store with a mop. Perhaps Marty replaced him.”
I’m resistant to doing all of my transactions through screens and robots. It makes me sad.
LikeLike
Me too.
LikeLike
I wouldn’t want to meet Marty in my local shop! I’s find it a lot easier without the attempt to make it look ‘human’. A humble – and shorter – device, clearly a machine, would feel less weird. But I’m well aware that change is inevitable and this is the direction in which we’re headed. There will be benifits, I’m sure.
LikeLike
I am at a loss to realize the benefits of putting people out of work except for the owners of companies.
LikeLike
Indeed *sigh* (And apologies for the various typos in my first comment. A combination of heat and fatigue.)
LikeLike
I want to put googly eyes on everything in that store. Everything.
LikeLike
Wouldn’t that be fun!
LikeLike