This robot video is weirdly depressing, and I've never been so happy to be human

It's rare that a robot video fills me with sadness, but this new one from 1X featuring the company's new Neo Gama humanoid robot left me in a state of ennui.

Neo Gamma is an update to the Neo Beta 1X introduced six months ago. At the time, the company claimed its black and gray humanoid robot was undergoing home trials. In the video, it showed the bot briefly interacting with (even hugging) a human companion. It left me and other roboticists I talked to skeptical. Home humanoid robots are generally thought to be a decade out, but 1X appeared to be trying to close that gap significantly.

Recently, the company unveiled Neo Gamma, a robot with numerous aesthetic and technical improvements. There are new "emotive" LED ear rings that the company thinks will help improve communication. I assume this is because the rings light ...