Remember Hitchbot, the hitchhiking robot mentioned in a previous post? A few days ago it was vandalized in Philadelphia and its creators, a couple of professors in Canada, have decided it is damaged beyond repair. Meanwhile, an unlikely “surveillance video” allegedly showing the vandalism turned out to be an infantile fake created by a couple of Internet wannabe celebrities, and there is speculation that they might also be responsible for the real vandalism.

The good news is that a second try at Hitchbot is planned for next year.

For more see this article at Ars Technica, this one from NBC News, and the Hitchbot website.

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