--- title: "Robot Goes Berserk in California Restaurant, Dragged Away by Staff After Smashing Tableware" description: "A video on social media shows a dancing robot knocking over tableware, smashing plates, and sending chopsticks flying." date: "2026-03-17" modified: "2026-03-17" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/robots-and-machines/robot-berserk-restaurant-tableware" categories: - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" --- # Robot Goes Berserk in California Restaurant, Dragged Away by Staff After Smashing Tableware ![A video on social media shows a dancing robot knocking over tableware, smashing plates, and sending chopsticks flying.]() *Strait Times via YouTube* Humanoid robots are rapidly gaining hype, from [battlefields]() to the [factory floor](). But there are clear growing pains when it comes to sharing spaces with our new automaton friends. Just this month, a video circulated online showing a [robot being escorted away by cops]() after startling an old lady. Now, a different robot appears to have gotten carried away while performing a dance routine at a hot pot restaurant in San Jose, California. A [video on social media]() shows the dancing robot knocking over tableware, smashing plates, and sending chopsticks flying. An orange apron the robot is wearing reads "I'm good" in big letters across the front, perfectly adding to the chaotic scene. Staffers at the restaurant were forced to intervene. One employee can be seen holding the robot by the scruff of its neck while navigating her phone, presumably searching the bot's app for controls. In the end, it took three workers to restrain the robot, who were all forced to duck periodically to avoid being smacked by its waving and sauce-covered hands. https://twitter.com/TansuYegen/status/2033803783973552452 Besides being the "[funniest thing I’ve seen all day]()," many netizens pointed out what appeared to be the glaring omission of an emergency off button. "More importantly, why isn't there a big red power off button on its back, you shouldn't have to reach for an app to do that..." one user [argued](). The incident appears to have been part of a promotional event for Disney's "Zootopia 2" at a Haidilao franchise in Southern California. As Chinese business and financial news website *Jiemian Global* [reports](), Haidilao is run by an international holding company that is known to invest in [automated kitchens featuring robot chefs]() and robot food deliveries. *Futurism* has reached out to the company for comment. While it must've been a hilarious sight to behold, other netizens struck a more ominous tone. "This is how the 'Terminator' timeline actually begins," one user [tweeted](). "Not with a bang, but with a boogie." **More on humanoid robots:** [*This Video of a Humanoid Robot Playing Tennis Is Extremely Impressive*]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()