Japan’s robot wolf sells out as record bear attacks drive demand(www.independent.co.uk)
45 pointsby bookofjoe2 hours ago10 comments
  • swiftcoder2 minutes ago
    Pretty sure I’m going to be seeing that robot wolf in my nightmares…
  • rwmjan hour ago
    A friend who lives there sent me this photo of a bear roaming an Aomori building from a few days ago. https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/society/general-news/2026051... (https://archive.ph/Z6llc https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/attachment/327729/)
  • bombcaran hour ago
    I know how this ends; with robot bears fighting off robot wolves whilst we cower underground.
    • JumpCrisscross15 minutes ago
      Are there any good robot animatronics for Halloween? I want a wendigo to walk around my yard.
      • beau_g8 minutes ago
        We have something close, but unfortunately not at the halloween decoration price point - https://www.satyress.com/
      • bombcar13 minutes ago
        Given the insane progression in the Home Depot Halloween displays I estimate it’s about two years off - twenty foot tall animatronic skeletons are now table stakes.
    • cyanydeez8 minutes ago
      Cant we just invent robot elephants?
  • towledev2 hours ago
    I wonder how the bears would write this headline
    • edaemon2 hours ago
      "TIDE TURNS AGAINST HUMAN TERROR-BOTS"
  • hirvi747 minutes ago
    I wonder if Japan would need robot wolves had they not wrongfully drove their native wolf species to extinction?
  • dudeinjapan2 hours ago
    > The robot scarecrows are used to ward off bears in rural areas

    Two thoughts on this captioned image: (1) holy $&!# that is horrifying (2) if its designed to ward off bears, isn't it a scarebear?

  • an hour ago
    undefined
  • water-drummer2 hours ago
    Thought I was in r/nottheonion for a moment
    • lukan17 minutes ago
      Title is click bait.

      It is a electronic scarecrow.

      Maybe one that moves soon, but even then still not something I would call a robot wolf.

  • readonkeyless2 hours ago
    Interested to learn about the encroachment into bear territory. Disappointed this article didn't dig more into exactly why this is becoming an increasing problem. Since Japan's population is declining and most younger people moving into larger cities like Tokyo in search of jobs, my assumption would be that there would be less development in more rural areas, not more.
    • skybrianan hour ago
      > Scientists speculated that the uptick in attacks has been driven by a growing bear population, coupled with the year's bad acorn harvest, USA TODAY previously reported. These conditions created an area "overcrowded with hungry bears," driving the large animals to populated areas in search of food.

      https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2026/05/13/super-m...

    • hackernews6822 hours ago
      Perhaps, because there are less people living in the rural areas, the bears are emboldened to roam more freely, thus increasing the frequency of encounters with the human occupiers.
      • mc32an hour ago
        But then it’s stated oddly. It’s more like bears are encroaching on human territory rather than people expanding into bear territory.
    • Barrin92an hour ago
      the fact that young people are moving has meant that money, attention and labor is missing, these days in rural sections of aging and developed countries the expertise and interest in forestry or wildlife management simply isn't there any more. I spent a few months in rural Japan a few years ago and it affected all kinds of jobs. Agriculture, pest control, or even much more mundane repair work. I knew a couple that moved there enticed by low property prices but they had to wait months to get the roof fixed.
      • AdrianB16 minutes ago
        People living in rural areas were capable of fixing most of their houses by themselves. When I grew up I spent most summers in a mountain village where people were self-resilient, I had all sorts of woodworking tools in the shed and other than electricity there was nothing my grandpa was not fixing himself and it was the same for all our neighbours.

        Now a couple moving from a city to a rural area needs to learn to do this work or not move to a village. The population decline in most places makes it clear that availability of services is only going to get worse.

      • bell-cot10 minutes ago
        > had to wait months to get the roof fixed.

        In economic theory, that's an obvious business opportunity.

        In the real world.., might you know what barriers a small roofing repair business would face in rural Japan?

  • ShivamNayak11an hour ago
    [dead]