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When a Robot Becomes the Life of the Party

Posted by timothy on from the perfect-for-next-mother's-day dept.

theodp writes "The rich are different; the geek rich are different-er. The WSJ's Emily Glazer reports that when Richard Garriott de Cayeux threw a costume party the night before his wedding in Paris, his 82-year-old mother — too frail to travel from her Las Vegas home — still dressed up as an Indian princess and attended the party using a $9,700 personal-presence robot from Anybots Inc. At the wedding reception the next day, Mama Garriott shook her robootie on the dance floor, encircled by kids and family. Telepresence robots aren't just for the likes of Sergey Brin anymore — companies like VGo, Xaxxon, Willow Garage, and iRobot have introduced personal-presence robots that range in price from $270 for a simple model to $50,000 for a machine that allows doctors to diagnose illnesses remotely. And, as an old NY Times article noted, they can also make fine Robot Overlords."

21 of 36 comments (clear)

  1. It would've been cheaper to hire a surrogate by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Larry Middleman could probably use the work.

    1. Re:It would've been cheaper to hire a surrogate by Ol+Biscuitbarrel · · Score: 1

      He's worth every penny.

  2. Garriott? Lord British!?! by Jeremiah+Cornelius · · Score: 1

    My God - if I knew the gaming business were so lucrative, I'd have specialized in that, over network security!

    --
    "Flyin' in just a sweet place,
    Never been known to fail..."
  3. face by buchner.johannes · · Score: 1

    Good she wasn't there ... she wouldn't have liked people writing all over her face and body!

    --
    NB: The message above might reflect my opinion right now, but not necessarily tomorrow or next year.
    1. Re:face by VortexCortex · · Score: 1

      Good she wasn't there ... she wouldn't have liked people writing all over her face and body!

      Clearly you have a different definition of "life of the party" than I.

  4. Problems by tbird81 · · Score: 1

    First world problems.

    1. Re:Problems by pseudofrog · · Score: 2

      First-world solutions to world-wide problems.

    2. Re:Problems by VortexCortex · · Score: 3, Insightful

      First world problems.

      I agree to an extent. However, 1st world tech also enriches the 3rd world. Cell phones used to be a solution to a "First world problem"... Now SMS is an important technology used by 2nd and 3rd world peoples regularly. Mobile computers used to solve a first world problem, and are now being used to teach school children in non 1st world nations.

      I've not figured out a use case for these "presence" robots outside of the "first world"; However, I'm not arrogant enough to say there isn't one...

  5. go full Avatar by currently_awake · · Score: 2, Insightful

    You need a full gimball suit with force feedback at your end, with a full humanoid robot at the other. Then you'd really be at the party, not just video-conferencing. Of course it's just a matter of time till criminals get into the act. You can have your Obama avatar robbing banks (instead of the taxpayer).

  6. the 1% by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    This just goes to show how gratuitous the 1% has become. Blowing this much money on a costume party? We need to take individuals like this more and redistribute the wealth to those who need it.

    1. Re:the 1% by JoeMerchant · · Score: 3, Insightful

      While the robot sounds expensive to buy, if you consider the cost of travel, it is saving considerable money (and carbon emissions) if it eliminates just two trips for a "real person," and the savings increase with each additional trip eliminated.

      While one might argue that you could teleconference without a robot instead, there are many times when the robot facilitates interaction in ways that a camera on a wall cannot - ways that can make the difference between needing to be there in person and not.

      The 1% has always blown absurd amounts of money on frivolities, back to "Let them eat cake" and beyond.

    2. Re:the 1% by phantomfive · · Score: 1

      The 1% has always blown absurd amounts of money on frivolities,

      The existence of infomercials proves it's not just the 1%.....

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
  7. He's Bender, baby! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Bender is always the life of the party.

    1. Re:He's Bender, baby! by PPH · · Score: 1

      How can you go wrong with blackjack and hookers?

      Wow grandma! Is that you?

      --
      Have gnu, will travel.
  8. Re:I have the utmost respect for Richard Gariott by osu-neko · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Richard Gariott decided that he was living in the future.

    "The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed." -- William Gibson

    --
    "Convictions are more dangerous enemies of truth than lies."
  9. OK... by jamstar7 · · Score: 1

    OK, so I surfed to WSJ and looked the article over. I saw the picture of Richard Garriott with two women.

    Remind me which one is the robot?

    --
    Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
  10. Re:Garriott? Lord British!?! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I'm sure Garriot made a lot in gaming but like most rich people he also started off wealthy.

  11. How is this news? by redback · · Score: 1

    Rich nerd buys expensive gadget, Film at 11!

  12. 10k is pretty cheap by loufoque · · Score: 1

    The parts alone would probably cost that much.

  13. chicks and ducks by cstacy · · Score: 1

    "When you take me out to the party in my surry with the fringe on...."

  14. When a robot becomes the life of a party... by pak9rabid · · Score: 1

    ...you're at a party not worth staying at.