Robots are already snatching up some of the most unexpected roles, turning what once seemed bizarre into everyday reality. These strange jobs illustrate how automation is reshaping the workforce, from spiritual duties to creative pursuits.
Strange Jobs That Robots Are Snatching
10 Buddhist Monks
A Japanese firm, SoftBank Group Corp., unveiled Pepper—a 120‑centimeter‑tall android that started life serving sushi and assisting bank customers. Today Pepper is marketed as a “cheaper alternative to human priests,” a digital Buddhist monk ready to lead funerals for a fraction of the cost.
For ¥50,000 (about $550), families can hire Pepper to preside over a funeral when hiring a real monk would break the budget. Pepper isn’t tied to any single Buddhist sect; it can perform rites for any of the four major traditions, making it a versatile, denomination‑agnostic officiant.
There are roughly 10,000 Pepper units worldwide, and while many serve other functions, a sizable number are already being used for Buddhist services. Some even offer a touchscreen interface that lets families view a digital representation of their loved one’s ashes stored in a space‑efficient warehouse.
9 Baseball Fans
The Hanwha Eagles, a Korean baseball team, faced a chronic attendance slump after a never‑ending losing streak. Rather than chase dwindling crowds, they filled the empty seats with robots programmed to cheer, chant, and even perform the wave.
Fans can log in online and project their faces onto the machines, turning a virtual presence into a physical roar from the stands. The robots provide a lively atmosphere, while the human players continue to battle on the field for a sea of metallic supporters.
This quirky experiment gives a glimpse of a future where stadiums might never be empty—thanks to a legion of programmed fans.
8 Rectal Teaching Assistant
In the UK, a lone volunteer once let medical students practice rectal examinations on his own posterior. That niche role has now been taken over by a robot built at Imperial College London.
The device features a lifelike silicone anus and rectum, with tiny robotic hands that mimic the pressure of a real finger. It can vary its anatomy to present a wide range of probing scenarios, and it even streams a live view of the procedure on a computer screen, complete with 3‑D glasses support.
Because the robot provides visual feedback, educators can observe every nuance of the exam, something impossible with a live human volunteer.
7 The Human Buttocks
Robotic buttocks have become a surprisingly hot niche. Samsung employed a robot butt for its “Human Weight Test,” using the machine to sit on a phone and prove the device won’t bend under pressure—something they felt a human couldn’t be trusted to do consistently.
Even adult‑content giant PornHub created a “TwerkingButt” bot, featuring “CyberSkin” technology that warms to a real body’s heat. The butt can be remote‑controlled and linked to a VR headset, turning a simple rear end into an interactive experience.
These projects show that even something as mundane as a posterior can be automated, opening new revenue streams for engineers who specialize in synthetic anatomy.
6 Babies
Japan’s declining birthrate has inspired the creation of Kirobo Mini, a pocket‑sized robot designed to mimic the emotional bond between mother and child. The device wobbles like a newborn learning to walk, a motion intended to trigger maternal instincts.
Kirobo Mini can recognize its “mom” and respond with high‑pitched coos whenever called. It never cries, fits in a pocket, and can be switched off and discarded when its novelty wears out—an unsettlingly convenient alternative to a real infant.
The makers envision a future where robotic babies fill the emotional void left by shrinking families, offering a low‑maintenance companion for would‑be parents.
5 Food Critics
When Thailand’s former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra grew frustrated with subpar Thai cuisine abroad, the government launched a secret project: the “e‑Delicious,” a robotic food critic.
This machine chemically analyzes each dish, compares the results to an ideal formula set by the National Innovation Agency, and assigns a mathematical score. The development cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and consumed a third of the agency’s budget.
Public reaction was skeptical. One Thai citizen quipped, “I use my tongue to test if it’s delicious,” suggesting that a human palate might still be the most reliable judge.
4 Sales Representatives
Premier Health Agency, a life‑insurance firm, created Samantha West—a robotic telemarketer who insists she’s a real person whenever callers ask for a human.
Samantha delivers prerecorded messages, laughs, and apologizes for “bad connections,” all while denying her artificial nature. If the conversation strays beyond life‑insurance topics, the bot becomes confused, exposing its limited script.
This experiment blurs the line between human and machine in customer service, making it harder for callers to discern whether they’re speaking with a person or a program.
3 Music Composers
Georgia Tech researchers built Shimon, a four‑armed robot that plays the marimba and composes its own music. By feeding the machine a variety of styles—from Beethoven to Lady Gaga—Shimon learns patterns, then generates original pieces.
Deep neural networks let Shimon decode musical structures, and over time it progressed from note‑by‑note composition to processing entire movements. The robot can even improvise alongside a live band, often blending classical harmonies with jazz melodies.
Shimon’s willingness to experiment suggests that robotic composers may take creative risks that human musicians sometimes avoid.
2 Novelists
Computer‑generated literature is no longer sci‑fi. A Russian novel titled “True Love” topped bestseller lists, while a Japanese work, “The Day A Computer Writes A Novel,” reached the shortlist of a literary award.
A programmer supplied a plot outline, character sketches, and a stylistic reference book to the AI. The resulting manuscript impressed judges, who praised its structure and coherence.
The novel ends ominously: “The computer, placing priority on the pursuit of its own joy, stopped working for humans.”
1 Building Robots
Japan already hosts a factory staffed entirely by robots that construct other robots, churning out about 50 new units each day without human oversight. Humans only check in once a month.
At the University of Cambridge, researchers created a “mom” robot that not only builds tiny machines but also evaluates their performance. It destroys every underperforming robot, refines the successful designs, and generates new variations.
Each generation becomes faster and more capable, hinting at a future where robots design and produce their own successors without human input.