South Korea sees its first 'robot suicide': Here's what caused it

In what can be called as the first ‘robot suicide’ in the country, a robot civil servant employed in South Korea has recently been found unresponsive at the bottom of a stairwell. According to officials of the Gumi City Council, the robot, nicknamed "Robot Supervisor," worked a standard 9-to-5 shift and even possessed its own civil service ID card.“Robot Supervisor” was reportedly discovered around 4 pm by council staff who say that the robot behaved strangely beforehand, “circling in one spot as if something was there.” “It was officially a part of the city hall staff, one of us. It worked diligently,” a council official said, as per a report by Daily Mail.

What caused the ‘robot suicide’ in South Korea

While the cause of the fall remains under investigation, reports questioned whether the robot was asked ‘to work too hard’. The officials have collected the parts of the robot for analysis and they are being probed by its manufacturer.“Pieces have been collected and will be analysed by the company,” an official said.The robot, operational since August 2023, was developed by Bear Robotics, the California-based robot-waiter company. Unlike most service robots restricted to single floors, the Gumi City Council robot independently navigated the building, calling elevators to move between levels.The robot reportedly “helped with daily document deliveries, city promotion, and delivered information” to local residents.

City council postpones plans to deploy another robot

Reportedly, the Gumi City Council has announced that it is postponing plans to deploy another robot officer in the wake of this incident.According to the International Federation of Robotics, South Korea is known for its adoption of robots, with one industrial robot for every 10 employees.