The incident took place on Monday, November 10, at the Yarovit Hall Congress Center as the robot slowly walked onto the stage accompanied by handlers. While attempting to wave at the audience, it lost its balance, tipped over, and collapsed. The accompanying staff immediately picked the robot, covered it with a black cloth, and carried it out of the hall. The presentation was abruptly called off following the incident.
Vladimir Vitukhin, CEO of the startup Aidol, explained the malfunction to the audience stating that the fall is due to calibration issues that possibly occurred because of poor lighting or a technical glitch.
“I hope this mistake will become a learning experience,” Vitukhin told the audience, striking a conciliatory tone.
The debut was intended to showcase a national technological advancement.
Earlier, Vitukhin emphasized that the robot is 77omposed of Russian components, a significant detail amid widespread Western sanctions that have hindered the country’s access to high-tech imports.
He also described Aldol’s abilities including object manipulation, movement, and natural communication powered by offline AI.
The robot features a silicon face with 19 servomotors designed to express over 12 basic emotions and “hundreds of micro expressions.”
Later, the robot was brought back on stage and it managed to remain upright.
The event, however, has gone viral online drawing international attention and highlighting the early-stage hurdles facing Russia’s burgeoning robotics industry.