New Japanese hotel to be staffed by robots

We're not sure if the robotic staff at a planned hotel in Japan will be tucking guests into their beds at night, but they'll be performing plenty of other traditional hospitality tasks. Huis Ten Bosch, a theme park modeled after the Netherlands in Japan's Nagasaki Prefecture, has announced plans to open a hotel with robot staff and other advanced technologies, CNN reports. The hotel will be called Henn-na Hotel, which translates as Strange Hotel. According to the park, the first phrase of the two-story hotel will open on July 17 with 72 rooms. The second phrase will be completed in 2016 with an additional 72 rooms. Operating under the motto "A commitment for evolution," the hotel will feature three "actroids" (robots with strong human likeness) that will act as receptionists. They'll be able to engage in intelligent conversations with human guests. The hotel will also employ four service and porter robots, and others engaged in menial tasks such as cleaning. Read more