If you take the Bostromian existential-risk-from-super-GAIs argument seriously, this sort of thing must sound horrifying. Imagine if in the 40s you read in the newspaper that a bunch of Manhattan project scientists had left to start their own weapons company!

A bit more seriously, didn’t one of Rodney Brooks’ companies bring out a robot that had roughly this concept? I guess it didn’t work out, since I haven’t heard of it replacing thousands of unskilled laborers.