An influx of cheap Chinese robot waiters has provoked anxiety in South Korea, as Seoul wrestles with a declining population and intensifying competition from Chinese tech companies.
Server robots, which ferry dishes to and from diners’ tables, are popular with South Korean restaurateurs who are struggling to hire staff amid labour shortages and surging wages. Many diners have expressed a preference for “touchless service” in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I don’t have to worry about hiring people anymore,” said Kwon Hyang-jin, who uses a robot in her Italian restaurant in eastern Seoul. “It never gets sick or complains about its workload.”