Oops: Pleo Sacrifice Big Mistake

The video we took at Maker Faire of a rather graphic encounter between a Ugobe Pleo and a ComBot has made its rounds of the internet, and as you might expect, the response has been somewhat mixed. I have to admit, I can’t really watch it myself, it’s pretty disturbing, especially since it goes on for a long, long time. Pleo is just too cute and friendly for that sort of thing, and I don’t even own one. People who DO own Pleos have been getting seriously upset, and Ugobe has taken notice. I’d like to restate unambiguously for the record that the Pleo in the video was an unsolicited donation by the Ugobe people at Maker Faire, but it now looks like that despite the wave of publicity it provided, Ugobe at large wasn’t particularly pleased with what happened… ugobeSarah posted this response on the PleoWorld Forum:

Hey all,

The folks that were behind this stunt did it without authorization or approval. It seems the prankster spirit overcame them, and FYI, there was quite a ruckus here in the office about it today. Many people were shocked and appalled, including the UGOBE reps at our Maker Faire booth!

We ourselves make emotional bonds with Pleo too!

Thanks for your concern! It is perhaps a small consolation to know that the Pleo destroyed was a factory prototype?

It won’t happen again under our watch!

I’m finding this whole situation pretty fascinating. When it comes right down to it, what’s the difference between the Pleo in the video and the ComBot that destroyed it? They’re both robots that can’t think or feel in the broader sense; they just execute commands based on external stimuli. Sure, Pleo looks cute and all. But more importantly, Pleo is sophisticated enough to get humans to suspend (to some extent) their disbelief in the fact that Pleo is made of servos, circuit boards, and lines and lines of code. We (yes, I’m one of those people) can get emotionally attached to this completely artificial life form and get upset on principle when one of them is needlessly and violently destroyed. It’s not just the emotional attachment, either: it’s the subsequent reminder that underneath Pleo’s cute exterior and adorable personality lie something incomprehensible and alien.

So, keep your skin on, Pleo. Maintain the illusion, because I want to believe that you’re alive.

[ PleoWorld ]

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