November 17, 2025

A Russian AIDOL Falls


A Russian AIDOL Falls
Russian AI robot "Aidol" tumbles on stage. The Edinorog, Telegram.

On November 11, a coalition of Russian technology companies presented the country’s first artificial intelligence robot on a Moscow stage. However, the robot lost its balance and fell over after waving to the crowd. Footage of the incident quickly went viral.

At the publicity event, Aidol's long-awaited first AI humanoid robot entered a Moscow stage accompanied by two men, as "Gonna Fly Now," the most famous song from the "Rocky" movie, played in the background. The robot slowly stomped across the stage. Then, as soon as it raised its hand to wave, Aidol fell on its face. The two men rushed to rescue the machine as it seemed to convulse on the floor. Two other men rushed from the side of the stage with a black curtain that twisted in the middle, allowing for a full view of the tumbled android.

The machine is a product of the Novaya Tecnologicheskaya Koalitsya (New Technological Coalition), a Russian association for the development of humanoid robots. The coalition includes companies such as Promobot, Dabl Yu Expo, Aidol, and Korporatsya Robotov (Corporation of Robots). According to Journalist Dmitry Filanov, Aleksei Yuzhakov, a former leader of the technological coalition, warned that there had not been enough investment in the robot's capacity to walk. 

The founder of Aidol, Vladimir Vitukhin, said the robot malfunctioned due to issues with its stereo cameras. According to Vitukhin, these parts are sensitive to light, and the lack of illumination on the black presentation stage was to blame for the robot's fall. Aidol later came to the stage a second time and walked successfully. The CEO said, "I hope this mistake will turn into experience."

The developers promoted the robot for "covering the three key human factors: walking, manipulating objects, and communicating with people." Aidol's developers claimed that their robot's facial and emotional expressions set it apart from other androids on the market. The machine can express 12 emotions and hundreds of microexpressions.

Aidol's machine does not require an internet connection and has a battery life of six hours. The developers believe it could be used in factories, logistics, and for customer service in banks and airports, among other sectors. Aidol's executives never specified which exact AI system they used.

Regardless, the robot's high-profile fumble garnered significant attention on an internet eager for Russian bungling in the wake of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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