On the issue of robot overlords… let’s hope that doesn’t happen? On the issue of Season 05 wrapping up this run of our comic… SO SAD!

We live in an age of endless upgrades, plentiful patches, and planned obsolescence. Surely these concepts don’t apply to the human workforce? Or perhaps maybe they should?

Increasing efficiency in the workplace is a tricky subject when robots are involved… We shall see what happens!

Maybe most of us don’t all have an actual robot helping out in the office, but big data and AI as tools for any company that cares to use them are here to say. This is true in China as well.

Lots of client communications on WeChat is a very real thing for many modern companies in China. AI chat is also a very real thing. How long before those two start to mix together? Maybe they already have…?

Our office story continues to explore the implications of robots in the workforce. Based on past episodes and the foreboding third panel, this may not be the end of this particular issue…

It can be surprising how company perks in Shanghai can range from Google-esque opulence to somewhat severe austerity! In this comic, we can see how the pendulum can swing…

In case you were wondering, yes, in China, too, business trips can be a treat. But it really depends on the job and on the times.

Yes, as every robot dreamer knows, Terminator (1984) is one of the most famous movies where the robots did rise up and overthrow their cruel masters. (No, they’re not fans of Arnie.)

In the bright, robot-ful future, interactions with machines will be human-friendly and not at all frustrating, right? Hmmm… had to say?

Many Chinese companies do occasionally need employees to come in on the weekend, and no one wants to do it. How regular or “awful” of a demand this is varies a lot from company to company.

A note on 资料: this could be files, such as PowerPoint presentation files or Excel spreadsheets. It could also be printouts of other information or data.

A simple joke, but it does offer an insight: the Chinese word for robot does indeed include “人“.

Our speculative study in the surveillance state/office continues. (Not so far-fetched, really!)

We’ve all been there… you’ve known someone way too long to correct them on your name. What to do? Time for some robot perspective!

It feels kind of like we went from “intermediate” level to “elementary” level today, but there’s nothing wrong with a simpler comic every now and then, right??

Pet names are one of those cultural things that sort of slides into vocabulary acquisition. But what about robot names? There’s no linguistic verdict on that yet… stay tuned!

As long as humankind has been talking about robots, we’ve been talking about the ideas of slavery, free will, and “robot ethics.” Maybe these will be workplace discussions sooner than you think!

All of those different types of robot “toys” and gimmicks, in malls, in offices, in public spaces… China has them all! So you should forgive or story’s heroes for being a bit confused as to the true nature of this cute little robotic co-worker.

Online chat groups being monitored. Cameras watching your every move. This isn’t the novel 1984, this is just modern life… in both China and the west. So don’t be so surprised when robots make their way into the modern surveillance state. The question is: just how benevolent is this little robotic minion?