We all engage with technology in multiple ways in our daily lives. But do we really want to get engaged through technology?
Whether human guests will pop the big question via a robot is the question being asked by Hotel Interurban, a boutique hotel south of Seattle in Tukwila, Wash. The hotel employs Hazel, a droid-like helper that makes deliveries to rooms.
But forget the aspirin or a toothbrush or the morning newspaper. Staff at the hotel decided to up Hazel’s cargo capabilities this summer with a “modern engagement package.” The robot is charged with bringing a ring to a guest’s room and popping a marriage proposal via its display screen.
The ring delivery comes with a bottle of champagne, a $100 dining credit at the hotel’s Waterleaf Restaurant & Bar, and a one-night stay.
The 185-room hotel opened last summer a few miles from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Hazel is a product of robot manufacturer Savioke, and was the first such hotel robot in Washington state.
In an age when we’re already asking artificial intelligence and voice assistants such as Alexa and Siri all sorts of questions, it’s a unique proposition to have such an intimate question as “Will you marry me?” being popped via robot.
When Hazel figures out how to get down on one knee, the hotel might really have something.
