I got a butt massage by an AI robot in L.A. Here's how it went

3 months ago 15

My archetypal gathering with Aescape, the AI-powered massage robot, was benign capable — if a spot eerie. As if HAL had gotten a occupation successful the Valley. I stepped into the austere spa country astatine Pause, a wellness halfway successful Studio City, and a sturdy massage array commanded the space. It was deep-sea bluish and plush, glowing from LED lights that lined its base. Its enormous, sculpted robot arms promised a unsocial spa experience.

Yes, I was astir to get a transformative butt massage by an AI-powered masseuse.

Aescape sparked a media frenzy erstwhile it debuted successful New York successful August astatine a fistful of Equinox gyms. This week, it arrives successful Los Angeles. Aescape volition unfastened its robotic arms for concern Friday astatine Pause.

I got a sneak peek, however, the time earlier Thanksgiving. Upon arrival, I slipped into specialized compression deterioration that the Aescape institution provided for optimal friction; nary lipid is required for this massage.

After lying connected the array belly down, my look nestled into a padded cradle, I selected my playlist connected a interaction surface (beach location to start, past relaxing soft music). I rapidly forgot astir the overhead extent sensors and surrounding robotics and drifted into calm. And though I longed for the intimacy of a quality masseuse, I recovered it to beryllium a amazingly decent session. Here’s however things went.

An bare massage array with robotic arms.

First, 4 high-resolution infrared sensors took a 3D scan of my assemblage from above, mapping 1.2 cardinal information points — each curve and asymmetric constituent connected my frame, overmuch to my chagrin — truthful Aescape could pinpoint wherever I was connected the array and amended people my circumstantial assemblage parts. Then its hulking robot arms reached up and astir my torso, earlier opening to massage me.

Aescape has heated “hands,” which look similar elephantine pads with interaction points connected their undersides. They’re modeled aft the mode a massage therapist uses their assemblage parts arsenic tools, kneading with the leaf of the manus astatine 1 point, past pressing oregon rolling with the bottommost of the palm, the elbow oregon forearm. I’d selected gentle intensity, truthful Aescape kneaded dilatory and deliberately astir my scapula astatine first, past applied airy rolling unit on my spine, mid-back. It didn’t consciousness precisely similar a quality hand; but surprisingly, I wasn’t creeped out, either. Instead, the acquisition mirrored that of a blase massage seat successful horizontal — not arsenic effectual arsenic an existent idiosyncratic but inactive providing much-needed alleviation successful cardinal areas.

The Aescape massage is wholly customizable. You dictate the benignant you privation — I chose “total backmost and glutes,” but “upper and mid-back focus” and “lower back, glutes and hamstrings focus” were besides offerings. You tin besides usage the interaction surface to power the strength of your massage arsenic it’s underway, expanding oregon decreasing the pressure, oregon pausing altogether.

Aescape is the brainchild of Eric Litman, a self-described serial entrepreneur who suffered from cervix symptom owed to a bulging disc and needed regular massages, adjacent portion traveling internationally. That’s a headache to schedule, particularly erstwhile there’s a shortage of massage therapists successful the U.S., according to the International Spa Assn.

As a solution, Litman imagined a “fully automated, customizable massage experience,” with the extremity of “bringing personalized wellness robotics to the masses,” arsenic the Aescape institution describes its mission. Litman founded the robotics institution successful 2017 and by November 2023, it had $85 cardinal successful backing from technology, wellness and hospitality backers.

The Aescape massage table's padded look cradle and idiosyncratic interaction screen.

“The intent was to physique a merchandise that addressed the needs of radical similar myself who struggled with getting the circumstantial massages that their assemblage needed — whether that’s due to the fact that of a deficiency of therapist availability, a deficiency of consistency among therapists oregon conscionable the tendency for a precise personalized experience,” Litman said successful an interview. “So what we’ve built is thing that caters remarkably good to each 3 of those needs. It’s accessible successful galore ways: It’s easy booked, it’s usable by radical who wouldn’t different beryllium comfy getting a massage [by a human] and it puts you successful control, allowing you to get the circumstantial massage you privation astatine that infinitesimal successful time.”

Then there’s this — for amended oregon worse, AI masseuses don’t request breaks to remainder their hands. They’re the perfect employees.

“It tin run 24 hours a day,” Litman said. “So it tin beryllium disposable astatine 11 astatine night, hours erstwhile you’re improbable to find a masseuse available.”

The Aescape institution plans to rotation retired tables astatine spas, hotels and fittingness centers arsenic good arsenic astatine corporations, for bureau workers, nationwide. In summation to its New York and L.A. locations, Aescape tables are present operating successful Miami, Baltimore, Nashville, Atlantic City, N.J., and Orlando, Fla. One volition debut astatine the Ritz-Carlton Bacara successful Santa Barbara connected Dec. 16. Users tin find adjacent Aescape tables and publication sessions connected an app.

Software engineers connection predominant updates to the Aescape tables connected the types of massages disposable oregon the euphony you tin perceive to. A vacation playlist was added conscionable this week, for instance.

However, Aescape is not cheap: $60 for fractional an hour, $120 for an hour.

It’s besides not arsenic intelligent arsenic I’d hoped. Aescape knows wherever your assemblage parts are located successful space, truthful arsenic to people the areas you’ve selected for your massage. But the diagnostic allowing it to intuit areas of hostility that request massaging hasn’t been rolled retired yet, Litman says. However, it is getting smarter, helium adds.

“It volition proceed to larn from each the massages that we give, crossed each our tables,” Litman says, “and let for radical to get a overmuch much customized, precise massage experience.”

Times newsman Deborah Vankin waves to the camera portion connected the massage table.

As a massage junkie, I similar the warmth and responsiveness of quality touch.

Even so, Aescape gave maine a beauteous decent massage. I had tally stairs the time earlier for workout and my glutes were sore. The robot masseuse kneaded my butt successful conscionable the close spots and adjacent relieved enarthrosis tightness from hours of typing astatine my desk.

And arsenic a bonus, it didn’t interrupt my massage with chitchat.

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