A robot was formatted at an event in Ankara on Feb. 6 for interrupting the Turkish communication minister during his speech. Turkish Minister for Transport, Maritime and Communication Minister Ahmet Arslan participated at an event for Safer Internet Day at a technology centre in the Turkish capital.
He shared the stage with the white toddler-sized robot named "Sanbot", programmed to participate in the event as a presenter. The machine interrupted the minister's speech multiple times, urging him to speak slowly.
"Speak slowly, I do not understand what you said," Sanbot interjected on one of several occasions. The minister tried to laugh off the interjections and continued, before the robot chimed in again, this time more brusquely. "What are you talking about?" Sanbot implored.
Following the warning, the minister gave instructions to "silence the robot." "Dear friends, it seems clear that the robot needs to be put under control, please can whoever is in charge do what is necessary!" he said.
The robot was then muted on the stage during the minister’s speech. Following the speech, the robot was formatted, officials said.
Video footage from the speech has gone viral in Turkey, with multiple clips of the robot’s interjections posted on YouTube and other websites.
Digital communications have repeatedly been the bane of the Turkish government under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. At times of protest, authorities have sporadically banned social media platforms, restricting access to Twitter repeatedly, and occasionally shutting out access to Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Whatsapp and, most recently, Wikipedia.
