ITNOW's Popular Computer Science (or PopCompSci) brings the most exciting stories from around the world of computer science together for a taste of the unexpected ways in which tech is impacting our lives. Here, we tell you how a team at Royal Holloway is investigating the impact of robot servers.
With the presence of solo robots on the rise in restaurants and hotels, a team from Royal Holloway University of London explored how to make these machines appear friendlier — particularly to solo guests and diners.
Critically, the researchers found that solo diners and travellers perceived human-like robots as providing a stronger personal connection compared to joint customers who operate in groups. However, the researchers found that these solo customers also found the robots ‘creepier’ than customers who visited a venue with company.
Service robots have become increasingly common across UK hospitality businesses in the post-pandemic era, with companies such as Bella Italia and Las Iguanas trialling such machines.
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Dr The Khoa Do (Bin), from the School of Business & Management at Royal Holloway, said: ‘By understanding how to reduce the "creepiness” factor while fostering a sense of social connectedness, we aim to help UK hospitality businesses, including local hotels and restaurants that are currently implementing service robots, create more welcoming environments for solo guests.’
The perception of service robots significantly influenced customers’ overall satisfaction, and in some cases made the solo customers less willing to spend more money, or share word-of-mouth on social media.
The paper’s empirical evidence indicated that companies looking to engender positive customer-robot experiences should invest in building background signals like lighting, scents and music. The researchers also suggested that solo customers can be made to feel more at ease by venue owners adding local cues like national flags to a robot’s body.
