NEW YORK\u00a0\u2014\u00a0A school district in a rural corner of upstate New York is hitting pause on plans to deploy an AI-powered, humanoid robot in the classroom after state education officials, teachers and local residents raised concerns, including the maker\u2019s ties to a company that produces realistic sex bots.<\/p>\n
The Salamanca City Central School District\u2019s board approved the nearly $60,000 purchase<\/a> from Realbotix with visions that \u201cSally,\u201d as the stationary robot with long dark hair has been nicknamed, would enhance the education of high school students studying robotics and technology fields. <\/p>\n \u201cHaving a difficult time programming an Arduino board? Don\u2019t even know what an Arduino board is? Ask Sally and she can explain it,\u201d Supt. Mark Beehler said. \u201cThe robot also provides opportunities for students to learn how the robot is maintained, how it is updated with new, approved content, and how to troubleshoot issues.\u201d<\/p>\n But as news spread in the small community located on the Seneca Nation of Indians reservation, parents and teachers worried about how students\u2019 personal information would be used. Unionized teachers took aim at Realbotix\u2019s sex doll sister company, even as district officials and the company itself stressed the two manufacturers operate independently. <\/p>\n \u201cA robot built by a company associated with sex dolls has no business in our classrooms,\u201d said Melinda Person, president of the labor union New York State United Teachers.<\/p>\n For now, the robot pilot remains on hold as the district works through \u201cenhanced student data privacy agreements\u201d with the state education officials and continues outreach to the community, according to a statement the district posted in late July <\/a>on its Facebook page.<\/p>\n State officials and teacher voice concerns<\/p>\n State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa said she remained concerned about the robot\u2019s role in the classroom even after her staff met with district officials.<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough you confirmed that the robot would not have any role delivering classroom instruction, a recent presentation to the board characterized the robot as a \u2018tutoring platform,\u2019 \u201d Rosa wrote in a letter to the district.<\/p>\n She also echoed residents\u2019 concerns about what data privacy and security protections would be in place. <\/p>\n Unionized teachers, meanwhile, suggested the effort was a first step toward replacing, flesh-and-bone educators. \u201cSally\u201d is able to move her arms and hands but not her legs. <\/p>\n \u201cOur students don\u2019t need robots,\u201d Person said. \u201cThey need real relationships with caring adults.\u201d<\/p>\n District officials defend robot purchase<\/p>\n Beehler stressed the pilot, which also includes rollout of a virtual, AI-powered teacher\u2019s assistant<\/a> and at-home tutoring program, is not about replacing staff. <\/p>\n \u201cThere is no possible way a robot can replace a human in a school,\u201d he said. \u201cEven if it were possible, it would in no way be in the best interest of students. Teaching is a human-to-human process.\u201d<\/p>\n Beehler, who was connected to Realbotix through a former colleague, said the Las Vegas-based company was a natural fit because its robots already are programmed with WozEd, a curriculum from Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak that the district uses. <\/p>\n Last year, a San Diego charter school rolled out two AI-powered robots<\/a> purchased from Engineered Arts, a robotics company based in the United Kingdom, for $500,000.<\/p>\n