The World Is Changing

We’ve got different AI Agents to help us think, write, draw and clone our thoughts, looks and speeches. They can also help increase our returns from our investments by purely looking at data and leaving all emotions out of our decisions to buy or sell an asset.

This is the software aspect of our quest to 10x or 100x our efforts.

But this is just half the equation.

The other half is to create a hardware version of ourselves to take over some or all of our manual labour and efforts so that we don’t have to do them.

And so humanity is on a quest to create all sorts of robots to do all sorts of things — like things that humans don’t want to do, or are unable to do, or should not do (because they’re too dangerous).

Robots today come in all shapes and sizes. The generally fall into two broad categories:

1. Specific-use robots

2. Humanoid robots.

Specific-use robots (also called special-purpose robots) are machines designed to excel at particular tasks, often with forms optimised for those jobs.

The robotic arms that weld and assemble cars in factories, or a Roomba vacuum cleaning your floors, are built for a specific function.

Humanoid robots are designed to resemble the human body, with a head, torso, arms, and legs (or at least a portion of those).

They are meant to operate in the same environments as people and perform a variety of tasks in a human-like way.

We’ve come a long way from the early humanoid robots that weighed a ton, had short battery lives and struggled to walk or do things like a human without falling over.

But a natural question is this.

Why bother making robots look and work like a human at all?

Why not just build every robot in whatever shape best fits its single job?

The answer lies partly in practicality. Our world is literally built for humans, because humans built it (of course).

From door knobs and staircases to tools and vehicles, so much of the environment is engineered for human use.

A robot with a human-like form can, in theory, use all those same tools and infrastructure with minimal modifications.

Humanoids can climb the stairs, turn the knobs, ride the elevators, and fit into workplaces and homes designed for people.

This can be easier than redesigning every tool or building for a uniquely shaped robot.

Another reason is versatility.

A humanoid robot is a generalist that is able to take on many different tasks.

Specific-use bots are specialists.

Instead of having one robot for cleaning, another for carrying items, another for personal assistance, etc., a single humanoid could potentially handle many jobs, much like a human worker.

Early household robots have indeed been very purpose-built (for example, a vacuum robot can’t cook dinner), and this lack of general ability has made single-purpose home robots a harder sell to consumers.

Humanoid robots offer a path toward a more all-in-one helper — which compensates for their much higher prices.

There’s also a social element: people might accept and feel more comfortable around a machine that looks somewhat like a person. In fact, some robots already look very much human.

A robot that has a friendly face or a familiar body plan could gain social acceptance quicker than a strange-looking contraption.

In short, specific-use robots give us efficient, specialised tools, while humanoid robots aspire to be flexible helpers blending into human environments and routines. Both types bring their unique values to humanity.

There are many different companies working on humanoid robots today, with more coming onto the scene.

The AI software aspect increases the capabilities of these robots in “thinking” and taking instructions to meet their owners’ requests.

Here are a number of them with their respective prices that should come down once they go mainstream:

Looking ahead, robots – both task-specific and humanoid combined – will change our lives in major ways.

Robots are already becoming part of our daily lives, in much the same way computers and smartphones have done.

The video below shows how robots are now working in a restaurant’s kitchen to prepare meals:

You can already see that robots will be displacing even more jobs.

A restaurant that needs 20 people to run it can now get by with maybe only 5 people.

This is great if you’re a business owner as you’ll be able to slash your costs tremendously.

It isn’t so great if you’re working for a business, unless you upskill yourself to ride this technological revolution that is happening everywhere around you.

Cheers!

P.S. Click here for AI-powered investing.

NOTE:

The 10x Factors for investors’s content is educational in nature, with examples used to illustrate the learning points. We are not financial advisors and do not provide financial advice. Please speak to your financial advisor before making any investment decision. Note that every investment comes with its own risks and drawbacks. Past results cannot guarantee future returns. Do not invest with money you cannot afford to lose.

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