Sure, giant robots are cool and all, but would you really want one stomping into a busy downtown intersection and ordering everyone around? That's basically what happened in Kinshasa, the capital city of Congo, when a pair of eight-foot metal behemoths were installed to direct traffic at the city's busiest intersections.
Photo: Junior D. Kannah/AFP/Getty Images
The Washington Post reports that the real-life RoboCops (who run on solar power) have proven very efficient in their jobs, which had previously been handled by human traffic controllers, and it seems the secret of their success is sheer intimidation. Seriously, look at this thing... would you throw attitude at that? What if he's packing a death ray?
Photo: Junior D. Kannah/AFP/Getty Images
“If a driver says that [he]'s not going to respect the robot because it’s just a machine, the robot is going to take that and there will be a ticket for him,” said the machines' inventor, Isaie Therese, in an interview with CCTV Africa (watch the whole thing below).
“I’m very happy with the robot’s work,” a Kinshasa motorcyclist told the network. “Because when the traffic police control the cars here, there’s still a lot of traffic. But since the robot arrived, we see truly that the commuters are respectful.”
Photo: Junior D. Kannah/AFP/Getty Images
Still not convinced our robotic overlords have begun their takeover? Check out our story about a creepy cyber-cube that walks on its own and can repair itself!