Death of HitchBOT

At this location in Philadelphia, near Elfreth's Alley, HitchBOT’s journey ended in August 2015. The robot was created as an experiment to see if strangers would help it travel. It had already successfully crossed Canada and traveled through Germany and the Netherlands before arriving in the United States. HitchBOT arrived in Philadelphia after being picked up and dropped off by multiple people along the East Coast. It was last placed on a public bench along North 2nd Street near Elfreth’s Alley. Sometime during the night, it was vandalized-its head and arms were torn off, and its body was heavily damaged. The creators confirmed its destruction the next morning after losing contact and reviewing images of the remains. No suspects were identified, and the robot could not be repaired, ending the U.S. portion of the experiment.