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1247 points mangoman | 9 comments | 05 Dec 16 14:57 UTC | HN request time: 1.155s | source | bottom
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delegate ◴[05 Dec 16 17:27 UTC] No.13107158[source]▶
Look, I know this might not be a popular view here on HN, but I think this is useless. And bad.

I'm not talking about the technology behind it (I think it's an amazing achievement)..

I live in Barcelona and I have at least 5 medium-sized supermarkets within 5 minutes walking distance from my home. Plus there are several smaller shops that sell fruits and vegetables.

I know all the people who work in these supermarkets. The cashier in the supermarket downstairs always sings a quiet song while she scans my products, she knows my daughter and she's always nice and friendly.

The cashier in the other store talks to the customers. She stops scanning and starts talking while the line waits. Some customers might join the conversation. I know she has an old cat that eats an unlimited amount of food if allowed to do so...

There are similar stories about other shops in the neighbourhood - they come to work, they serve the people in the neighbourhood, they go home. They do this until they retire.

These people like their jobs because we respect them for what they do, so they feel useful and they work hard.

I don't mind waiting in line for 3 minutes. Or 5. It's never longer than that, even if the cashier discusses the latest news with the old lady.

The humanity of it has value for us here and that value is greater than the time we'd save by removing the people from the shops.

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crazypyro ◴[05 Dec 16 17:37 UTC] No.13107308[source]▶
Trying to save jobs that are no longer the most efficient way of solving a problem is not the way to promote the value of humanity, in my opinion. People want groceries as cheap and fast as possible. They don't go to the grocery store for social interaction and forcing the majority of people to pay extra for something that only the minority get value out of is not a competitive strategy.

If humanity were to take your opinion, we'd never evolve as a society, lest we remove a need in society and with it, someones job.

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subdane ◴[05 Dec 16 17:52 UTC] No.13107467[source]▶
This makes sense from a suburban, car-based perspective. From a walking, city-based lens, neighborhoods and social interactions make a lot of sense. It's why coffee shops haven't been made obsolete by vending machines - at least here in New York. Point is, it depends on your perspective.
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1. tekklloneer ◴[05 Dec 16 18:09 UTC] No.13107650[source]▶
> It's why coffee shops haven't been made obsolete by vending machines

I really don't think that's why. Vending machines can't compete with humans still for freshly produced goods. There have been a few shots across the bow, but producing food that requires adjustment is still beyond the range of our sensors.

I can't imagine a robot "dialing in" an espresso machine based on taste like a barista would, at least for another decade.

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2. pshc ◴[05 Dec 16 18:59 UTC] No.13108196[source]▶
But I go to coffee shops for the productive atmosphere. I think baristas (and bartenders and sommeliers) will always have a place even in a post-work world.
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3. TeMPOraL ◴[05 Dec 16 19:13 UTC] No.13108320[source]▶
I think if someone made a vending machine that actually makes coffee the way a barista would, instead of pouring hot water into dried powder of random chemicals, I'd never ever visit a coffee shop again. But as it is now, vending machine coffee tastes so bad it's almost a separate category of awfulness (and don't get me started on vending machine tea...).
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4. politician ◴[05 Dec 16 19:18 UTC] No.13108361[source]▶
Well, at Starbucks they appear to literally press a single button to pull a shot. So, not much art to that.
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5. brians ◴[05 Dec 16 19:31 UTC] No.13108463[source]▶
Those machines cost $10-$30k, and require cleaning every few hours (minimum wage, only significant skill is the diligence to do it) and maintenance every few days or weeks by a steam plumber. The operator/button pusher is a little bit like a flight attendant: most days here to get you your drinks—but every once in a while, here to notice steam coming from the wrong place and take the machine out of service.
6. tekklloneer ◴[05 Dec 16 21:09 UTC] No.13109608[source]▶
How does a barista offer that, versus simply visiting an interface (app, browser), clicking a button, and having it delivered to your table by a robot within five minutes?

I don't think the "productive atmosphere" concept is fully realized yet. Imagine how happy starbucks would be if they could reclaim all of that bar area for more seating (and more customers ordering more drinks!) or less area and less rent.

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7. pshc ◴[05 Dec 16 21:53 UTC] No.13110057{3}[source]▶
Ah, you got me! Yes, it's the overall atmosphere, not just the productivity. The romance is admittedly a part of it. I'm not opposed to robots making coffee, but I also suspect that in a post-work world, I'd be a part-time barista for the social-cool factor and mechanical-aromatic satisfaction.

(I can't help but think that half the attraction of Starbucks is having chipper college students hand-write a personalized drink order...)

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8. billatq ◴[06 Dec 16 03:32 UTC] No.13112031[source]▶
It's not quite a vending machine, but Nespresso has replaced going to the coffee shop for my morning espresso. I think it does a better job than Starbuck, personally.
9. tekklloneer ◴[06 Dec 16 20:19 UTC] No.13117928{4}[source]▶
I think there will probably be a lot of niche, human staffed places. I worry though, that as robots close the gap, our collective baseline for cost will drop so low that $3 for good espresso will seem outrageous when the robot will churn it out for a $1, perfect every time.

Also, the chipperness is a lot less likable when you're friends with some of them and all they can talk about is how much they hate customers :( The unspoken secret of retail is that it's soul crushing to work in.