[bjackman]

IIUC dexterity is gonna be the bottleneck.

There was actually a post on here a few months back where someone claiming robotics expertise posted exactly what you asked for: a list of things they didn't think robots were close to being able to do.

IIRC the list included folding textiles, and soon after a video was released of a robot folding textiles, but it was very janky, it's not clear to me if it proved the original article wrong or was more of an "exception that proves the rule".

Personally I have my washing machine in the basement, you need a key to access it (and I can't modify it, it's a shared space in a building I don't own). I'm always thinking about that. A robot that can do my laundry and open locked doors doesn't seem to be on the horizon yet.

[prawn]

Hate to say it, but I suspect people who can't afford their own laundry might be well down the list of potential customers in all this.

[drfloyd51]

But people who own the shared spaces might be high on the list.

The poorer will get robotics as a condiment. Like WiFi.

[bjackman]

Trust me, plenty of millionaires are doing their laundry in a shared Waschküche in Zürich!

Current Chinese dev bots cost like $15k. Vapourware startups are claiming they'll ship their humanoid robot product at $20k. I'd pay that in a heartbeat for robot that could actually do my laundry.

(But more impactfully surely there are loads of Californians with a utility room in their garage, or a basement that can't be accessed from inside the house)

(Also... I just realised, if there were robots that could do laundry, but couldn't navigate to my basement, I would move. I think laundry bots would genuinely be that desirable)

[prawn]

Maybe, but I was thinking the next bracket or two up. I'm sure things will trickle down though.

[bjackman]

Don't think those people need robots? I don't think the next bracket up from me does their own laundry today.

[prawn]

The companies servicing that echelon would replace staff as soon as they could. In an apartment, the building owner would plant one in the shared laundry and add an optional price for tenants to use it.