[Desk Column] Robots in Daily Life: Crisis and Opportunity

Although the 200㎡ meat restaurant hall was packed with customers, there were only two staff members. Instead, two serving robots busily moved between tables carrying heavy trays and bottles of alcohol. People unfamiliar with serving robots took photos of the robots bringing food, seemingly intrigued. The four-tier serving robot, standing 123 cm tall and weighing 35 kg, can work from opening to closing after charging for about half a day before the store opens. There is no need to comply with the 52-hour workweek system, nor to enroll in the four major social insurances.

This robot can operate as long as a passage of a certain width is secured and there are no floor level differences. The robot rental company promotes that operating serving robots costs about a quarter of the labor cost based on this year’s minimum wage (8,720 KRW per hour).

Using kiosks at fast-food outlets has become a common sight. It was unimaginable even just 2 to 3 years ago. Although infrequent users may find it awkward and inconvenient, no one believes that kiosk stores will stop increasing. Recently, even large corporations have entered the kiosk business.

The autonomous service robot, Robot Caddy, carries golf bags and follows golfers while providing course information and the distance to the group ahead. Considering the special nature of caddy services, it cannot immediately replace tens of thousands of caddy jobs, but it is expected that many golf courses will soon adopt robot caddies. What about wearable robots? When attached to specific body parts, they can assist with strenuous physical labor. They can also help people with disabilities to be active and rehabilitate.

Among bio-responsive companion robots, the product called Hydol has already been distributed in over 3,000 units. This companion robot can serve as a friend, child, or guardian for the elderly by providing functions such as waking up, sleeping, medication reminders, alarms, simple conversation partners, and various content like exercise. It not only keeps the elderly company or helps with learning activities such as Bible memorization but also monitors health conditions like responses, heart rate, and blood pressure, transmitting the data to medical institutions. This means its potential for future applications is limitless. Although there are limitations in appearance quality and content due to current technology and regulations, it is rapidly expanding with a distribution target of about 16,000 units within the year.

Danal, a mobile payment company, has a robot barista that can make up to 90 cups of 14 types of beverages, including Americano, per hour. Since payment can be made via kiosk, it can operate without staff. Recently, a large corporation signed a contract for about 100 robot baristas for internal use.

The advent of robots makes human life more convenient. Especially, the impact of robots at consumer touchpoints on daily life is even greater. The changes felt nearby are gradual, but looking back just a short time ago, those changes are dazzling. We only truly realize these changes after the present has passed.

The world is in the midst of a tremendous whirlwind of change. Even without mentioning the variable of COVID-19. Robots in daily life will surely bring us rest and leisure. But at the same time, we may face an era where we have to compete with robots?over jobs or roles. Robots penetrating daily life through technological advancement are both a crisis and an opportunity for humans.

Kim Min-jin, Director of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.