No longer confined to the factory floor, humanoid robots are entering everyday environments from airports and homes to temples and wellness events. This rapid expansion is testing how humans will interact with machines outside of industrial settings.
Japan offers the most striking examples of this shift. At Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, Japan Airlines (JAL) will begin trialing humanoid robots from Chinese robotics company Unitree as baggage handlers and cargo movers. The initiative is designed to alleviate labor shortages as inbound tourism surges and Japan’s aging population shrinks the available workforce. JAL Ground Service President Yoshiteru Suzuki said the robots could “reduce the burden on workers,” while humans will continue to oversee safety-critical tasks.
Elsewhere in Japan, robots are moving from physical labor into social and cultural roles. Kyoto University recently unveiled Buddharoid, an AI-powered robot monk trained on Buddhist scriptures to provide spiritual guidance and perform traditional gestures like bowing and prayer. The project follows the introduction of the robotic priest Mindar in 2019 and reflects Japan’s attempt to preserve religious institutions as temple closures accelerate due to depopulation and an aging clergy.
