What AI Robots Struggle With

Robots are still bad at many things humans find easy because humans are amazing at moving, touching, balancing, noticing, adjusting and using common sense. For example:

• Picking up lots of different objects. They might pick up a box perfectly then struggle with a soft jumper, a slippery cup, tangled headphones or a half-open packet of chips.
• Moving naturally like people do. They struggle in crowds, with stairs, uneven ground, wet surfaces and with people suddenly changing directions.
• Common sense. They do not naturally understand things like: "This room is messy but it does not mean everything is rubbish." Or "Do not put the wet towel on the laptop."
• Creative originality. AI can imitate styles, but humans are better at making work that feels meaningful, surprising or emotionally resonant.
• Acting with incomplete information. Humans are better at making decisions with only partial information.

Humans are better at describing and interpreting social interactions in a moving scene. These are skills necessary for self-driving cars, assistive robots and other embodied AI.