The Psychological Trap of Near-Human Design

Robots that look almost human trigger feelings of revulsion rather than empathy. We are programmed to find subtle imperfections in fake humans deeply unsettling.

The uncanny valley describes a sudden dip in our comfort level as an object gets closer to looking like us. While we love cute, cartoonish robots, those that are just slightly off—like a wax figure or a stiff android—make our brains sound an alarm. Scientists believe this reaction may be an evolutionary guardrail to help us avoid sickness or corpses. Designers now work hard to keep their creations from falling into this creepy, lifelike gap.