An Upstate New York school district bought a $60K robot teacher that looks uncomfortably like a sex doll

Key Points:

• The Salamanca City Central School District approved a nearly $60,000 purchase of a stationary robot named “Sally” from Realbotix to support high school robotics and technology education, aiming to help students with programming and troubleshooting.
• The purchase sparked controversy among parents, teachers, and union leaders due to Realbotix’s association with a sister company that manufactures sex dolls, raising concerns about data privacy and the appropriateness of the robot in classrooms.
• State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa and union representatives expressed worries about the robot’s role and the potential for replacing human educators, while the district emphasized that “Sally” is intended as a supplemental educational tool, not a replacement for teachers.
• Realbotix clarified that “Sally” is a purpose-built educational robot with no crossover in hardware or operations with the sex doll company, and that student data would remain encrypted and controlled by the district.
• Despite district officials highlighting the robot’s potential to provide access to advanced technology in an isolated community, some local residents remain skeptical and prefer increased human interaction over robotic assistance in education.