According to a report by The Guardian yesterday, the Salamanca Central School District in New York State recently announced that its humanoid robot teaching pilot, conducted in collaboration with Canadian Toronto-based technology company Realbotix, has been suspended.
The district stated: “We are working with the New York State Department of Education to further refine the student data privacy agreement while continuing to communicate with community stakeholders to ensure that privacy protections are comprehensive. Thank you for your patience. We will provide updates in due course.”
According to reports, the Salamanca Central School District is located on the Seneca Nation reservation in northern New York and serves a large number of Native American students. The district had originally planned to introduce Realbotix’s Sally humanoid robot into high school classrooms.
The humanoid robot is priced at approximately $58,000 (note: approximately 393,000 yuan at the current exchange rate). It has silicone skin and brown hair, and can create hands-on learning experiences for students through natural conversation, facial expressions, and real-time interaction.
The New York State United Teachers union had publicly opposed the plan, stating: “A robot made by a company associated with adult products should not be in our classrooms.” (Realbotix acquired Simulacra two years ago; the latter primarily produced adult dolls.)
Union president Melinda Person further stated: “Our students do not need robots. They need real relationships with adults who care about them. Educators can recognize when students are struggling and encourage them when they succeed. No matter how realistic a robot’s skin is or how precise its accent sounds, it cannot do these things.”
Lacey Pihlblad, president of the Salamanca Teachers Association, said: “We are uneasy about Realbotix’s background. We are very concerned about whether the robot will store data and whether it has recording capabilities.”
Realbotix CEO Andrew Kiguel responded: “We fully respect the school’s decision and are willing to cooperate with due diligence.”