They seem to be everywhere online: very realistic human-like, human-scale robots with smooth surfaces, proper proportions, fast and natural movement, able to do almost anything a human can do. They seem friendly, make jokes, and often show off physical feats only gymnasts can do. Millions of humans watch these videos, and the comments often say, “The future’s already here!” The current reality in early 2026 is more complicated.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://community.robotshop.com/blog/show/the-viral-illusion-why-the-internet-gets-humanoid-robotics-wrong
When I talk to everyday people who aren’t engineers or have backgrounds in robotics, this comes up a lot — many assume robots are already way more capable than they really are and then think “Oh, well … they’re not really that advanced” when they learn about teleoperation and other real-world limitations. Just like pretty much everything else on social channels (and media sites), it’s all about appearance and getting clicks!