After trekking the globe in an adventure of Will Ferrel in "Elf"-like proportions, a 1-year-old robot made it to the City of Brotherly Love and was met with anything but.
The robot, known as hitchBOT, successfully made its way through Canada, Germany, and a three-week long vacation in the Netherlands. HitchBOT's creators, two Canadian professors David Harris Smith and Frauke Zeller, had big dreams for the little traveller, hoping it would fulfill a laundry list of American past times including listening to jazz in NOLA, taking a touristy picture with Mt. Rushmore, and maybe even purchase embroidered Mickey Mouse ears from Walt Disney World. The world was hitchBOT's oyster, and its future seemed brighter than its yellow rain boots.
Equipped with bright yellow hands, blue legs, and a friendly, inviting pixelated smile, hitchBOT was dropped off near Salem, Massachusetts, in hopes of exploring America and making new pals along the way.
Shortly after journeying from Boston to New York, with a pit stop in Time Square to take photos for Twitter and Instagram, hitchBOT made it to Philadelphia.
Early on Saturday morning, people made a gruesome discovery as they happened upon hitchBOT dismembered and beaten to a pulp in Old City.
It's safe to say that jawn was gone.
Warning: Photo is graphic.
A trip with the promise of cheesesteaks, photos at LOVE Park, a run up the Rocky Steps and a hammock hangout at Spruce Street Harbor Park was broken, much like the hearts of technology lovers and compassionate Americans everywhere.
The creators released a statement about hitchBOT's passing, assuring that his untimely demise will not be in vain.
"Sometimes bad things happen to good robots," they said in a statement on hitchBOT's official website. "We know that many of hitchBOT's fans will be disappointed, but we want them to be assured that this journey is not over. For now we will focus on the question "what can be learned from this?" and explore future adventures for robots and humans."
The creators are not actively seeking the culprits, in order to remember the good times and for what hitchBOT was: a happy-go-lucky, brightly-colored robot that enjoys Blueman Group, social media, and baking desserts.
HitchBOT itself made a very high road statement regarding the abrupt end to its Philadelphian adventure. It seems to be taking its death very well.
"My trip must come to an end for now, but my love for humans will never fade," hitchBOT said.
Rest in paradise hitchBOT, we hardly knew yee.
