Video should start at the relevant segment. I agree, people aren’t meant to operate as individuals, but that’s where many of us are stuck at now. Living alone is challenging and dangerous. A bad accident could be the end of me. No one is calling for help. Once you accept the need for a companion robot, what should it look like? It should look like what would normally be there – not C-3P0. But few will want their companion robot to look as old as they do, and that would likely add to the cost. It’s going to be a “porn built the internet” kind of situation. The sex doll industry is building out the infrastructure for affordable, realistic companion androids. Adding companion functionality to a product that is already in production is likely cheaper than making an entirely new product, which means that is what most people will have. Of course, most people are going to want the pretty one anyway. It’s going to be a special kind of person who is willing to pay more to have an unattractive companion robot. Compare an old face to a young face, and ask which one will cost more to make. The old face has so much more detail in it, all of which has to look natural to avoid the uncanny valley. Only someone with a fetish for old people is going to pay more to get that look.
