Employees had to restrain a dancing humanoid robot after it went wild at a California restaurant
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When we think about the existential threats of new technology, we’re usually thinking about something like the recent negotiations between Anthropic and the Pentagon over how AI can be used in the military. It’s terrifying to think about — how long will it be before a nuclear weapon can be detonated without any human intervention? We’ve been spending so much time thinking about these potential catastrophes that we haven’t braced ourselves for the more immediate danger in our midst: dancing robots. A dancing robot at the hot pot restaurant Haidilao in Cupertino, California, boogied a little too hard, got too close to a table, and started smashing plates and sending dishware and chopsticks everywhere, prompting the restaurant’s staff to intervene, according to a video posted on the Chinese social network Xiaohongshu by user Meooow. A dancing humanoid robot got a little too funky during a performance in Cupertino, California and had to be restrained by staff after knocking items off a table. pic.twitter.com/nZQsGoFHn6— ABC News (@ABC) March 19, 2026 From what we can see from the video, at least three employees struggled to restrain the robot as it flung its arms around. One Haidilao employee seems to be looking at her phone, perhaps in an attempt to toggle something on an app controlling the robot. It’s possible the robot — which appears to be an AgiBot X2 robot, which was featured at the CES conference in January — has a kill switch, but the staff might not have known how to operate it. If you’re not familiar with hot pot, you should know that, as its name suggests, it involves very hot pots of soup. No one likes spilled food, but if the robot were to knock piping bowls of bone broth over, it wouldn’t just be a culinary disaster, it might seriously burn someone. Not to mention any potential blunt-force damage from the now-moshing automaton.
When The Killers sang “Are we human or are we dancer,” we did not realize they were asking us to take a stand in the future robot wars. Haidilao confirmed the mechanical contretemps in a statement to NBC News, but denied the robot was “malfunctioning or out of control.” Techcrunch event Disrupt 2026: The tech ecosystem, all in one room Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $400. Save up to $300 or 30% to TechCrunch Founder Summit 1,000+ founders and investors come together at TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 for a full day focused on growth, execution, and real-world scaling. Learn from founders and investors who have shaped the industry. Connect with peers navigating similar growth stages. Walk away with tactics you can apply immediatelyOffer ends March 13. San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026 REGISTER NOW “In this case, the robot was brought closer to a dining table at a guest’s request, which is not its typical operating setting,” the Chinese chain of hot pot restaurants told NBC News in a statement. “The limited space affected its movement during the performance.” AgiBot did not immediately respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment. Haidilao has experimented with a “smart restaurant” in Beijing, which used robotic servers and broth mixing machines. It seems that this Haidilao restaurant was just using this robot for entertainment purposes, but things got out of hand when it danced a little too close to customers. Many startups are working on bringing robots to the food service industry, like Shin Starr, which is working on making fully autonomous kitchens. Pudu Robotics’ BellaBot, a cutesy, cat-like robot, can direct customers to their seats and bring out their food when it’s done. Maybe that’s safer than humanoid robots, for now at least — the BellaBot does not have any limbs. Topics agibot, AI, Gadgets, Robotics, robots Amanda Silberling Senior Writer Amanda Silberling is a senior writer at TechCrunch covering the intersection of technology and culture. She has also written for publications like Polygon, MTV, the Kenyon Review, NPR, and Business Insider. She is the co-host of Wow If True, a podcast about internet culture, with science fiction author Isabel J. Kim. Prior to joining TechCrunch, she worked as a grassroots organizer, museum educator, and film festival coordinator. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of Pennsylvania and served as a Princeton in Asia Fellow in Laos. You can contact or verify outreach from Amanda by emailing amanda@techcrunch.com or via encrypted message at @amanda.100 on Signal.
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