‘Really inappropriate’: teachers decry plan for humanoid robot in New York high school

Robot from company that acquired sex doll maker to be introduced in school with large Native American population A humanoid robot is being introduced as part of a pilot program, along with an AI teaching assistant, at Salamanca high school in Salamanca, New York, located on the Allegany territory of the Seneca nation. Teachers have criticized the program, deeming it “inappropriate” and claiming it dehumanizes the profession with the introduction of human-like robots. Some local Native American residents have also criticized the pilot program, citing its implementation as “culturally tone deaf”. The robot, named Sally, was purchased by the Cattaraugus county school district – which includes Salamanca high school – for $57,590. According to a presentation on the program, Sally will be a closed-loop system, but available virtually to students 24/7 for those with access, and offers personalized learning options. The district will be the first in the US to deploy a humanoid robot and AI teaching assistant, according to a press release by Realbotix. “The Salamanca pilot also includes deployment of a Realbotix M-Series humanoid robot, which uses natural conversation, facial