An automation company’s commercial bathroom-cleaning robot is giving consumers hope that one day there will be an at-home version.
Somatic, a technology-focused cleaning service based in New York City, has seemingly grown enough in the three years since its founding that consumer technology shoppers are voicing their hope for residential bathroom-cleaning robots.
Technology journalist and contributor Kurt Knutsson, also known as the "CyberGuy," spoke with Ainsley Earhardt of "Fox & Friends" on Friday, Sept. 15, to discuss Somatic’s offerings.
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"You got to see this robot from Somatic," said Knutsson during his in-studio interview. "This is a AI robot janitor that is going to do all the dirty work that no human wants to do for real."
"They go into a bathroom, and it does the scrubbing. It sprays it down to all. It scrubs the floor. It vacuums up the water that it left behind, cleans off the toilet seat, and then it jumps to the next bathroom and just repeats the whole process," he continued.
While the Somatic robot "is geared for commercial application" at this time, Knutsson compared the automated worker to that of the Roomba, a popular autonomous robot vacuum designed by iRobot, which has been in the home appliance space for over two decades.
"Hopefully [Somatic will] come to an affordable place for just regular people, like you and me, where we can get this in our homes," Knutsson told Earhardt.
Businesses can lease a Somatic robot for $1,000 per month, and no long-term contracts are required.
"It makes sense if you have a big company to have this thing go rolling around," said Knutsson.
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Fox News Digital reached out to Somatic for comment.
Consumer tech shoppers who want to see Somatic develop a residential-friendly, bathroom-cleaning robot have voiced their thoughts and questions on various social media platforms.
"I want one in my home. I don't care how impractical it is," a Reddit user wrote under a video of the Somatic robot in action, which was shared in the "Singularity" tech subreddit on Aug. 17.
"Does it clean the hair out from the sink," an X (formerly Twitter) user asked under a video of the robot, which was shared by an account called Tech Burrito.
"I love it and does it wash kitchens too? I already want one," a Facebook user wrote on Nov. 15, 2022, when the Somatic robot was highlighted by UNILAD, a British digital media company.
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Many other social media users have voiced that they want to see how the robot performs with filthy bathrooms before they cast judgment.
And even more people have expressed their displeasure that the Somatic robot could take jobs away from janitors and other service industry workers.
Those who aren’t impressed with the Somatic robot have shared their own opinions and questions online.
"Not clean enough for my taste," one X user wrote on June 9.
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"I’ll be impressed when it refills the toilet paper," another X user wrote.
One Facebook user pointed out that the robot is mainly if a bathroom large enough to accommodate a cleaning machine.
"How will it react if I’m on the toilet and it’s trying to clean," another Facebook user asked. "And when it’s down for maintenance who will want to clean when the job will only last a week or two."
Janitors and building cleaners throughout the country earn between $15.19 to $22.26 per hour," according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Wages vary depending on location and the employer, which includes government buildings, schools, healthcare and various businesses, the same source noted.
Maids and housekeeping cleaners earn between $10.83 and $20.54 per hour, according to the BLS.
To read Knutsson’s full review on Somatic, read his report on Fox News Digital.
