Let us welcome our Robot Overlords

On a day like today, you need something to take your mind of all the bad things in the world. And no, I have zero interest in Star Trek Discovery right now, even if initial reviews are good.

One of the problematic media tendencies I alluded to in my last post is also the tendency to paint all sorts of apocalyptic scenarios. “The robots will take our jobs” is a sadly common one. Here is a recent example, which aired on TV this Wednesday.

The following day, I was in Oldenburg on my regular under- and sleepwear buying expedition at Leffers. And while I was on my way to the under- and nightwear department on the top floor, I came across this little cutie:

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Pepper, the robotic sales assistant at Leffers in Oldenburg

This is Pepper, Leffers‘ new robotic sales assistant. She can talk, she will show you pictures of the latest fashions as well as a short slideshow of Oldenburg. Here is an article about Pepper from the Leffers website.

Pepper is always surrounded by customers, because she’s fun. However, when I needed to a new pyjama, the one who quickly found one for me that wasn’t just the right size, but also matches my specific requirements regarding cut and material was not Pepper, but one of her human colleagues.

So yes, maybe robots will one day take our jobs. But that day is still quite a bit of.

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