"I am alone in a dimly lit room, splayed face down on a table. Megan Thee Stallion's Mamushi is bumping from a speaker, and on a large screen, two white circles roam up and down an outline of my body. Am I at an exclusive German sex club at 2am? Sadly, no. I am in a suburban shopping complex on a Tuesday afternoon, getting a massage from an Aescape robot."
"While there can be value in these tools, De la Garza says she is not worried about a robot coming for her job. First, there are real physical benefits to being touched by a person. During the early pandemic, for example, when people were isolating and social distancing, many reported feeling skin hunger a sense of deprivation and abandonment that comes from not getting enough physical touch."
A person receives a 30-minute Power Up massage from an Aescape robot in a suburban shopping complex, using a cushioned table with two robotic arms that follow preferences and preselected programs. The Power Up costs $60 and aims to leave the user invigorated and alert. Massage therapy can help with anxiety, depression, sports injuries, digestive disorders, headaches, and soft tissue sprains; it can also improve circulation, strengthen immune response, lower stress, and increase energy. A board-certified massage therapist notes value in devices but emphasizes real benefits of human touch and skin hunger experienced during isolation.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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