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Yes, robot technology is improving nicely. But many problems don't really need "robots". Often something far simpler will suffice.

For example, a "smart" moving base may replace waiters(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1cjhxEhq9Q) . i suspect this could have been built a decade ago. But something has changed, and we'll probably see many more such solutions.

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But that's not actually simpler; there's two more solutions to whatever problem that thing is trying to solve: Self-service / buffet style restaurants, or the little conveyor belts with continuous dishes you see in Japan.

The complexity comes when you try and retain an existing workflow by a robot. You see this same thing when it comes to package delivery or warehouses, where they try to replace a human with a robot instead of redesigning the whole process as robot-first (this mainly aimed at warehouses btw)

On the nail. Automation is a tool not a solution, and like any tool its best use depends on context - including not to use that tool at all. Thanks for the reminder.

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