On March 5th, a unmanned noodle shop appeared in Shenzhen, where everything from flour to serving is completed by robots without any human involvement. This news has sparked concerns and resistance online.
According to the account “俯瞰觀天下” under the Yunnan Network Broadcasting and Television Station, a unmanned restaurant named “Smart Noodle Shop” has emerged in the Xinghe WORLD Artificial Intelligence Industrial Park in Shenzhen.
It is claimed that this noodle shop, from kneading the dough to cooking and serving the noodles, the entire process does not require human participation and is entirely completed by robots. Moreover, the noodles are freshly made on the spot, taking only 48 seconds to serve a bowl.
Comments from netizens expressed displeasure, “It tastes even worse than pre-made meals.” “It’s just for novelty, longtime customers wouldn’t prefer these noodles.” “After all, a machine is just a machine, can it match the taste and experience of a top chef?” “Noodles without the essence of cooking lack a soul! – Jiang Wen’s ‘In the Heat of the Sun'”. “I am not optimistic about this, many people are just attracted to novelty at first, but eventually prefer to spend money for human service. This is at best like some automated vending machines in certain places.”
In the past two years, the Chinese Communist Party has been mass producing humanoid robots. Currently, over ten provinces and municipalities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, and Jiangsu have introduced policies to support the development of humanoid robot industry. In addition to unmanned noodle shops, humanoid robots will be widely used in manufacturing, medical, logistics, consumer industries, and more.
The replacement of human workers by robots has raised concerns among many people. Netizens have voiced their worries, “If robots replace humans as the mainstream workforce, the unemployment rate will continue to rise.” “As more and more basic jobs are taken over by robots, labor costs are decreasing. On one hand, it is inevitable. But on the other hand, wages are further squeezed – more and more people are unemployed. Without stable income, what good does lowering costs do for you? Let’s wait and see.”
“Technological advancement should focus on enhancing human productivity, assisting in better welfare, reproduction, and inheritance of mankind, rather than becoming a tool to deprive a group of people of their right to survival.”
Some netizens are calling for resistance, “We should resist robots, everyone will become unemployed with the rise of robots.” “For the sake of preserving our own jobs, we should boycott such noodle shops! Artificial intelligence should not steal our jobs! Artificial intelligence should demonstrate its strengths in high-risk industries, rather than further squeezing the space for human survival!”