Madison Polidoro, a Philadelphia‑based fine artist and fabricator, teamed up with the art collective Ministry of Awe to build a remote‑controlled robot that directly confronts the growing presence of autonomous delivery bots on city streets.

The piece, dubbed Orifice and later known as Awebot, is a fully handmade sculpture. Polidoro eschewed digital design tools, opting for pen‑and‑paper sketches, an aluminum chassis, wood, foam, silicone components, and even real hair contributed by friends. The result is a weather‑resistant, rubbery creature with a whimsical “orifice” that could theoretically carry a package, though that is not its purpose.

Operated by a remote‑control driver from the collective, Awebot roams public spaces, inviting spontaneous encounters. Children, dogs, and passersby often stop to photograph or interact with the robot, while occasional face‑offs with actual delivery bots turn the streets into a playful arena of obstacle and threat.

Beyond the spectacle, the work comments on the accelerating pace of technology and AI, channeling discomfort into a tactile, human‑scaled alternative. The collective’s philosophy treats human emotion and imagination as currency, and the robot embodies that by turning a sleek, capital‑driven gadget into a hand‑crafted, approachable companion.

Polidoro envisions the project expanding, hinting that Awebot may soon gain siblings, continuing the dialogue between handmade creativity and the automated world.

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