Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots • Hacker News Board

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#111

Post by VladVladikoff » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:30 AM UTC

robots0only wrote: post #83

trollbridge wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A robot that could wipe after using the toilet (admittedly fairly easy with modern-day powered bidets), clean someone up, help them shower, etc. would actually be a really big deal for care of the elderly. Currently this is a job a human has to do. It would allow elderly to regain a certain amount of independence. Often they start having trouble with just 1 or 2 of these tasks, but then a home health aide is needed o…

Any robot that does this reliably is easily more than a decade away.

As long as it hits before my kids have to wipe my elderly ass I’m golden.

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#112

Post by fragmede » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:31 AM UTC

chrisweekly wrote: post #96

stbtrax wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't entirely doubt the landlord but the bizzarre part is the landlord showing up to take their trash and then somehow finding bundles of wires inside the unit. Why would an airbnb host enter the unit to take trash?

"Why would an airbnb host enter the unit to take trash?" Not every airbnb host has a professional cleaning staff, and some of those who do may sometimes wish to check the status of their property. I don't find anything strange, let alone "bizarre".

Mid visit though?

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#113

Post by fragmede » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:37 AM UTC

derektank wrote: post #107

hsnv wrote: post #6

I've always found the idea of letting strangers clean my home strange. Maybe I grew up in the wrong tax bracket. I see cleaning your own home, as well as other chores (dishes, laundry) as an act of self-hygiene. If you want a robot to do your chores, that gives me the same feeling as desiring a robot to bathe you, wipe your bottom and genitals after the toilet, brush your teeth for you etc. Of course these are not ap…

I would absolutely purchase a robotic tool that brushes my teeth for me. I’m sure it would be much better I am at cleaning my teeth. I already use an electric toothbrush and a waterpik for exactly this reason.

Autobrush!

https://tryautobrush.com/

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#114

Post by [deleted] » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:39 AM UTC

ASalazarMX wrote: post #86

tikhonj wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My guess is that they're currently nowhere near robust or effective enough to make that realistic. They need to bootstrap somehow, if only get good enough to convince hotel management that their approach will be realistic in the future.

This is my take too. Hotels wouldn't be happy if a robot knocked a water jar on the carpet, or scratched a wall, but a home owner? We're doing it for free and you asked for it! Hotel's girl management might be more undertanding than I assume, though.

[deleted]

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#115

Post by fragmede » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:41 AM UTC

falcor84 wrote: post #95

rglover wrote: post #56

Ha! My wife just asked me about a random job she found on Craigslist the other day. It was for what looked like a shell company, offering $10/hr to have you strap a camera to your head while you do specific chores like laundry, dishes, etc. She asked me what I thought it was and I said "someone is farming training data." Turns out.

Well, either that, or a fetish.

Hey, $10 is $10.

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#116

Post by bruhlikereally » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:44 AM UTC

somethoughts wrote: post #68

It would seem like such an obvious win-win if these cleaning robotics companies just won a couple of contracts with some tech forward hotel chains. - Faster R&D since hotel rooms are regular/familiar - Cost center for hotels so revenue would be higher/straightforward - No privacy issues since robots would not be present in rooms with guests - Easier servicing/maintenance since multiple robots at same location

Does not make any sense for them since it’s not a unique environment. You could rent one hotel room or build a cheap replica and get all of your training done in one shot. They’re obviously trying to hit unique environments with many different unforeseen obstacles to overcome.

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#117

Post by quietbritishjim » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:45 AM UTC

not_a_bot_4sho wrote: post #103

signatoremo wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are the minority - [0] According to that article: - The global cleaning services market is predicted to grow to roughly $482 billion in 2026 and $859 billion by 2030 with a 7.5% annual growth rate. - There are over 1.4+ million cleaners currently employed in the U.S. - The U.S. janitorial services market is worth $112 billion, with 1+ million cleaning businesses as of 2026. - The average annual pay for a cleaning…

> You are in the minority ... 41% of households use recurring cleaning services ... Wouldn't that put OP in the majority?

If 41% of households are actively employing a cleaner then it seems very likely that more than 50% would be happy to have their home cleaned if only they could afford it (as opposed to the commenter starting this thread, who seems to see household cleaning as a positive part of their life).

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#118

Post by bruhlikereally » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:47 AM UTC

woah wrote: post #92

somethoughts wrote: post #68

It would seem like such an obvious win-win if these cleaning robotics companies just won a couple of contracts with some tech forward hotel chains. - Faster R&D since hotel rooms are regular/familiar - Cost center for hotels so revenue would be higher/straightforward - No privacy issues since robots would not be present in rooms with guests - Easier servicing/maintenance since multiple robots at same location

These guys may actually just be angling to sell off the training data. diverse training data is more valuable

Yeah, this seems like a much more likely option. Get a ton of good, completely unique scans of real world environments you could never replicate in testing and even if your product sucks and you fail entirely, you’ve got a really good dataset to sell to a big company that’s close on a product and needs data to enhance/refine on.

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#119

Post by [deleted] » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:52 AM UTC

falcor84 wrote: post #94

robots0only wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any robot that does this reliably is easily more than a decade away.

Did you mean that to sound distant? Because my reading is that if we have robots reliably doing these sorts of delicate tasks in a decade or two, it would be amazingly revolutionary and disruptive to the economy.

[deleted]

Re: Shift will clean homes for free to train future robots

#120

Post by ramses0 » Sat, May 30, 2026, 1:57 AM UTC

hansonkd wrote: post #10

hsnv wrote: post #6

I've always found the idea of letting strangers clean my home strange. Maybe I grew up in the wrong tax bracket. I see cleaning your own home, as well as other chores (dishes, laundry) as an act of self-hygiene. If you want a robot to do your chores, that gives me the same feeling as desiring a robot to bathe you, wipe your bottom and genitals after the toilet, brush your teeth for you etc. Of course these are not ap…

In general once or twice a month cleaners aren't hired to "tidy up", they deep clean. a bit like the difference of brushing your teeth and going to a hygienist.

Housekeeper. House Cleaner.

The first organizes things and may do the laundry or put away groceries or something. I wouldn't know for certain, as my income doesn't yet reach to those heady heights.

The second vacuums, mops, cleans bathrooms, etc.