Japanese telecom giant Softbank’s humanoid robot Pepper gestures alongside Tottori Prefecture Governor Shinji Hirai as they promote the sale of watermelons produced in Japan’s Tottori prefecture, at a shop promoting produce from the prefecture, in Tokyo on July 1, 2015. On Sunday, one of the many Pepper robots in Japan was attacked by a drunken customer. AFP
A Japanese man who allegedly attacked a phone shop robot in a drink-fuelled rage because he was angry at customer service has been arrested, media said.
Kiichi Ishikawa, 60, was captured on security camera aiming a kick at the 120-centimetre (four-foot) -tall Pepper, a talking android used by mobile phone chain SoftBank to gather customer feedback.
Reports suggested Ishikawa, who appeared to have been drinking, was annoyed at his treatment at the hands of a human member of staff, and took his annoyance out on the automaton.
Pepper, a moon-faced robot on rollers that has what looks like a tablet computer attached to its plastic body, has been billed by its makers as a human companion capable of understanding language and emotion.
The alleged attack on Sunday morning in a store in Kanagawa, near Tokyo, appeared to have slowed the speed of its reactions and dulled its movement, according to Sponichi, a tabloid newspaper.
Kanagawa prefecture police told AFP they were investigating how much it will cost to fix the robot, which is on sale at 198,000 yen ($1,600) plus monthly fees.
SoftBank has hundreds of Peppers in its stores nationwide.
As well as being offered for sale as a companion in robot-obsessed Japan, Pepper is also being used to sell coffee machines in one chain and greet customers at a Japanese bank. TVJ