Powering Down Japan’s iconic Henn-na — literally “Strange” ­— hotel has decommissioned half of the 243 robots it once used to handle everyday operations. Since opening in 2015, the hotel has raised publicity by “employing” hundreds of bizarre robots that ranged from bizarre-but-helpful-I-guess to downright annoying, according to The Wall Street Journal. The robot helpers made for a fun gimmick, but weren’t quite ready for the big leagues — a blow not just to dreams of an automated world, but to Japan’s pop-culture image as a leader in the space. Bugging Out Some of the problems stem from creative ideas that didn’t pan out, like a robot velociraptor that staffed the check-in desk. Others came from an inability to keep up with the breakneck pace of assistive technology, like how Churi, the personal assistant robot found in each room, could handle basic tasks but pales in comparison to the personal assistant that comes standard with any new smartphone. In case after case, these robots proved too annoying or broke down too often to be worth the trouble, according to the WSJ. The velociraptor couldn’t handle foreign guests, for instance; human employees had to come over to photocopy their passports. Advertisement Advertisement Churi could change a room’s temperature and respond to basic small talk, but couldn’t answer any questions about the area or other attractions. Meawhile, Henn-na Hotel’s management was so confident in the robots’ abilities that they didn’t equip rooms with phones. Later on, management made up for Churi’s limitations with the cutting-edge solution of placing a human employee at the front desk to answer questions. Meanwhile, Churi would reportedly wake up guests again and again after mistaking their snoring for a question that the robot couldn’t quite understand. Trying Again So what if Henn-na Hotel’s robotic luggage shuttles get in each other’s way and can only access about a quarter of the hotel’s rooms without breaking down? The ubiquitous presence of these robots, even the immobilized bot who forever sits at the piano without ever playing a note, gives the hotel a retro-futuristic vibe, sort of like how the Jetsons had an autonomous robot maid but still gathered around a tiny television set. In the future, Henn-na Hotel plans to adopt robotic technology that’s more similar to the advances we see elsewhere, like facial recognition door locks, the WSJ reports. It won’t be as charming, but it should work a little bit better. Advertisement Advertisement READ MORE: Robot Hotel Loses Love for Robots [Wall Street Journal] More on robotic limitations: You Have No Idea What Artificial Intelligence Really Does As a Futurism reader, we invite you join the Singularity Global Community, our parent company’s forum to discuss futuristic science & technology with like-minded people from all over the world. It’s free to join, sign up now!<doc-sep>It turns out that even robots are having a tough time holding down a job. Japan’s Henn-na “Strange” Hotel has laid off half its 243 robots after they created more problems than they could solve, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal. One of the layoffs included a doll-shaped assistant in each hotel room called Churi. Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa can answer questions about local businesses’ opening and closing times, but Churi couldn’t. When hotel guests asked Churi “What time does the theme park open?” it didn’t have a good answer. That was a problem because Churi was supposed to help ameliorate the Strange Hotel’s staff shortage by substituting in for human workers. Others on the chopping block: Two velociraptor robots positioned at check-in were also decommissioned because human workers essentially had to do their jobs for them and photocopy guests’ passports manually. Two robot luggage carriers could only reach about 24 of the over 100 rooms in the hotel and failed in rain or snow. They would also often get stuck trying to pass by each other. The hotel’s main concierge robot also didn’t know how to answer questions about flight schedules and nearby tourist attractions. It has since been replaced by a human. Many of the robots that have been retired were in service for years, making them outdated. The hotel decided it was easier to fire them than to replace them, citing high costs. And in the end, a lot of the work had to be left to humans anyway, especially when it came to asking more complex questions. It seems we’re still a little ways off from a completely automated hotel.<doc-sep>A hotel in Japan has laid off more than half of its robotic staff following complaints from some guests about the practical limitations of the machines. Among the 243 robots employed by the Henn-na Hotel, which roughly translates as "Weird Hotel" were a velociraptor receptionist, an automated gardener and a one-armed claw that handles left luggage. The facility which made headlines in 2015 when it opened in Nagasaki Prefecture, also made use of more experimental machines, such as bedside table-sized butler capable of arranging a wake up call or announcing the weather forecast. Glitches with this robot saw it wake up guests who were snoring loudly after mistaking the noise for a voice command, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Hen-na hotel describes the concept as "excitement meets comfort" thanks to "state-of-the-art" technologies. "One of the definitions of the Japanese word 'Henn' is 'to change, which represents our commitment for evolution in striving for the extraordinary sensation and comfort that lies beyond the ordinary," the hotel's website states. "Staying at Henn na Hotel is filled with unexpected and delightful surprises. The unique experience will take our guests one step into the future." When The Independent visited in 2017, there were no humans to be seen working in the hotel. The initial success of the hotel led to several other openings of robot hotels, with the founder of the H.I.S. travel agency behind the concept originally saying he planned to launch up to 100 over five years. (HUIS TEN BOSCH (HUIS TEN BOSCH) (HUIS TEN BOSCH (HUIS TEN BOSCH) (HUIS TEN BOSCH (HUIS TEN BOSCH) “Having robots in charge of the reception and placing robots everywhere, we aim to make it the most efficient hotel in the world,” said HIS. founder Hideo Sawada at the opening of the second robot hotel in Chiba Prefecture. He added that hotel was "not about being strange, it’s about transforming and evolving."<doc-sep>
While humanity is growing leaps and bounds in the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning, the world's first 'robot' hotel has just proved that people may still not be over the human connect. Japan's Henn-na Hotel's novelty is that it is the world's world AI hotel. It employed 243 android 'staff' including a mechanical velociraptor bellhop and a female robot receptionist who only spoke Japanese. However, according to a reports, the hotel has fired almost half of these staff after guests started complaining about the robots. Apparently, several of the robots including the Japanese speaking receptionist were unable to live up to their jobs. The receptionist was unable to answer basic questions asked by tourist regarding train/flight schedules or fastest route to get to places. The robot luggage carriers were unable to travel very far as they were susceptible to environmental damage. In fact, they could only reach 24 of the 100 rooms in the hotel. And perhaps the loudest complaints were against Churi, the allegedly annoying room-assistant that the hotel provided. This android called 'Churi' was accused of being inefficient as compared to Amazon's Alexa and Apple's Siri. It also annoyed guests by waking them up when they were sleeping after misinterpreting snoring sounds, the Wall Street Journal reported. The hotel, which opened in 2015 in Sasebo's Huis Ten Bosch theme park near Nagasaki and even made it to Guinness World Records for being the only all-AI hotel in the world, now employs both humans and robots. Huis Ten Bosch President Hideo Sawada who is the owner of the hotel, said he hadn't completely given up the dream of an all AI hotel but conceded that certain tweaks were needed. Despite our dependency on machines, it appears that humans are not completely over the craving to be around and be assisted by other humans.