Awww. I loved that guy. Less than one month across Canada was an incredible feat. Not so sure I could even do that. When we set out to see if a robot could hitchhike across Canada, we were trying to initiate discussions about trust, notions of safety, and about our attitude towards technology. We also wanted to see, of course, whether a robot could hitchhike across the country, relying only on the goodwill and help of strangers. hitchBOT, Canada’s first hitchhiking robot, traveled unaccompanied across the continent (from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Victoria, British Columbia) in less than one month, relying solely on the help of strangers. The robot could not move by itself, so people who picked up hitchBOT had to carry it to the car, lift it inside, put the safety belt on, and plug its power cord into the cigarette lighter. The robot’s communication features were entertaining, albeit rudimentary, mimicking a fun companion for a car drive. Its character was expressed through sometimes indiscrete, funny statements, such as the question “Are you a girl?” If answered with “Yes”, it followed up with “Are you sure?” hitchBOT’s physical appearance was designed to instill trust, and to make people want to engage and connect. Most importantly, the robot was approximately the size of a 6-year old child, appealing to human behaviors associated with empathy and care. Sometimes bad things happen to good robots.