A visitor was hospitalized and in need of stitches at the Chinese equivalent of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) after being attacked by a robot called “Xiaopang,” or “Little Fatty.”
The visitor’s leg sustained minor lacerations from a spray of broken glass caused by Little Fatty ramming through its display booth in the midst of a demonstration. He was taken to Peking University Shenzhen Hospital by ambulance, where he later received a few stitches before being dismissed later that day.
According to China Daily, event organizers attribute the accident to operator error caused by an employee mistakenly hitting the “forward” button instead of “reverse.”
The incident occurred on Thursday, November 17th , at the China Hi-Tech Fair in Shenzhen, China, a six-day tech event featuring 3,000 exhibitors. CHTF is an annual event that draws visitors from all over the world to view upcoming technologies and products.
Little Fatty belonged to the exhibitor Spreadview Century, a Shenzen-based tech firm.
Designed as an interactive toy for children between the ages of four and twelve, Little Fatty can serve as a butler, sing songs, help tutor children, or give massages. The $1,500 robot flashes a series of facial expressions on screen to display “emotions.” Following the accident, witnesses claim Little Fatty displayed a frowning face as if in apparent remorse.
The meter-tall toy was produced by a Beijing robot company Evolver and originally debuted in November 2015 at the World Robot Conference.
Local News described the event as China’s first ever robot-related injury, although the accident is attributed to human error rather than machine uprising.
Source: Thetimes.co.uk & China Daily
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