[exDemMom]

Yotaro is a robot baby. Though he doesn’t exactly look like a real baby, he cries, sneezes, suffers that perpetually drippy nose that is instantly recognizable to any parent, giggles when tickled, and is calmed by his rattle. His creators are hoping that if he can spark some measure of parental emotion in the people who see him, maybe they’ll consider making a real baby. "A robot can't be human but it's great if this robot triggers human emotions, so humans want to have their own baby," said Hiroki Kunimura, the Yotaro project leader.

Or that could have the opposite effect. Robobaby is awfully close to uncanny valley territory, that place where things that are not human look too human, making them appear seriously creepy.

[Slings and Arrows]

Or it could make potential parents realize how much work a baby is, and have them opt for a cat instead.