The Humanoid Robot Pepper Serves At A Cell Phone Shop In Tokyo, Japan

A cell phone shop staffed only by Pepper, the humanoid robot from SoftBank was opened for a limited time only in Tokyo, Japan in 2016. Pepper, dubbed the world’s first emotional robot, was first introduced to the public in 2014.

Perhaps you might worry about some distant future future in which robots will take your job, but in Japan, that future is already happening — and it's being led by SoftBank's Pepper robot. The robot-staffed store is located on Tokyo's swank Omotesando luxury shopping strip and features five to six Pepper robots working to help customers looking to buy a mobile phone with SoftBank wireless service. Humans will only be on hand to help with the customer identity verification process.

Pepper is a humanoid robot SoftBank introduced in 2014, It can move around offices and homes entirely on its own and listen and respond to speech. It lets users operate its apps via a chest-mounted touchscreen. When the robot — which measures 4 feet tall, weighs about 61 pounds, and costs $2,000 — first launched, it sold out. But despite that early success, SoftBank is doing everything it can to popularize the robot as it makes its way into Japanese homes (and, probably, the rest of the world).

One thing is certain, robots represent a potential labor-saving solution not only for this particular company, but on the long run globally as well. We have to admit, the entire idea and concept seem awesome, and we had to play this video several times just to admire the entire robot-human interaction. Kudos for the idea! Now, on to you - how do you feel about this? Do you believe robots could entirely replace human labor in the years to come? Share your thoughts below in the comment section!