While around the world, people are lauding the most advanced and revolutionary robotics advancement, some people with a geeky sense of humor in Japan set out a search for the most useless robot design. The competition is called Bacarobo (from Japanese word "baka" which means "stupid" and "robo" for "robot"). According to CScout Japan, the criteria are rather unclear, but entries should generally be pointless, practically useless and funny mechanical bots.

The irony here is, while the robots have no use in everyday life, sophisticated mechanisms are required to make them work, making them anything but stupid. Having begun last year, the entries this 2008 include an "Idol Robot" that leans over any face it deems attractive and "Jointed Samurai Robot" that consists of two sticks (one held and one tied atop the head) that go limp whenever the user feels embarrassed. There's even a Swedish creator who entered the competition with robots that tell perverted jokes. Check out the video above for a glimpse of the competitors in action.