I wrote about Elon Musk's "autonomous" robots and a 1959 tech fair in Moscow where the Americans used similar tactics to show off a robot that was actually controlled by some guy hiding in the next room.

Elon Musk's Robot Tricks Were Used on Soviets in the 1950s Too

An American tech fair in Moscow during the Cold War featured a robot vacuum secretly operated by remote control.

We just love mechanical turks, as a species. Cannot get enough of themWe just love mechanical turks, as a species. Cannot get enough of them

The whole point of the Khrushchev-Nixon debate was that the Soviets were awake to this, just not about the issue that sparked the debate (modular kitchens, not particularly hi-tech)

I know this wasn’t the point of your article but now I’m super curious if there’s really just a guy piloting my Roomba around.