€5,000 Humanoid Robot Lands in Malta: From Pastizz Runs to Parkinson’s Care, Islanders Split on High-Tech Housemates

**A Humanoid Robot for €5,000: Malta’s Newest Household Helper or High-Tech Novelty?**

Picture this: you’re sipping a cappuccino on your Sliema balcony, the church bells of Stella Maris chiming noon, while a sleek, two-legged robot waters your geraniums and reminds you that your pastizz delivery is two minutes away. Science-fiction? Not any more. Chinese start-up Unitree has just put its G1 humanoid robot on open sale at €5,000 a pop—roughly the price of a second-hand Kia Picanto—meaning the first Maltese households could be welcoming a mechanical house-mate before the feast of Santa Marija.

Local tech importer RoboTech Malta has already taken three pre-orders, two from gaming companies in St Julian’s and one from a private buyer in Naxxar who, according to sales manager Luke Pace, “wants to film TikToks with his nonna reacting to a robot making ftira”. Pace says the first shipment of ten units lands at the Freeport next month, with customs duty and VAT pushing the final tag to €6,200—still cheaper than a summer berth at Portomaso.

Cultural ripples are already spreading. Fr Joe Borg, who lectures ethics at the University of Malta, warns against “reducing human interaction to lines of code”. “If Grandpa starts chatting more with a machine than with his grandchildren, we’ve lost something of our Mediterranean soul,” he told *Hot Malta*. On the other hand, 72-year-old Ħamrun resident Mary Camilleri, who cares for her husband with Parkinson’s, sees salvation. “I can’t lift him alone at 3 a.m. If a robot can help me turn him in bed, I’ll light a candle to St Ġorġ Preca in thanks.”

The government is scrambling to keep up. Parliamentary Secretary for Digital Innovation Omar Farrugia confirmed to this newspaper that a national robotics task-force will publish draft guidelines by October covering privacy, liability and labour impact. “We’re not going to end up like the traffic-cam fiasco—legislation will keep pace,” Farrugia insisted during a demo at SmartCity, where the G1 performed the Maltese sign-of-the-cross faster than most altar boys.

Employers are salivating. Hugo’s Group is piloting a G1 as a roaming cocktail waiter at its new rooftop lounge in Paceville. “Tips are split between the human staff and a charity fund,” says CEO Hugo Chetcuti, “so nobody loses out.” Meanwhile, the Malta Chamber of SMEs fears that cheap mechanical labour could threaten the island’s 8,000 cleaning and hospitality jobs. “We’re asking Brussels to classify humanoids as ‘digital workers’ subject to social-security contributions,” said president Paul Abela.

Not everyone is waiting for Brussels. Gozitan farmer Joe Vella has crowdfunded €8,000 to buy a unit he plans to retrofit for tomato-picking. “If it can dance on TikTok, it can crawl through polytunnels,” he laughs, showing off a prototype straw hat designed to keep the robot’s sensors cool in the August sun.

Data-protection advocates sound the alarm. “These bots record 4K video 24/7 and stream it to Shenzhen,” warns lawyer Dr Julia Caruana. “A single unit strolling through Valletta could capture facials of every passer-by, in breach of GDPR.” She advises owners to register devices with the Information and Data Protection Commissioner—currently processing six humanoid-related requests.

On the streets, opinion is split. “For €5,000 I’d rather buy a Harley,” barks taxi driver Charlie Zahra outside the airport. Yet his teenage son Kayden has already bookmarked 50 “robot fail” memes. “Imagine the carnage at Junior College if someone hacks it to shout ‘Kif inti, ħabib?’ during lectures.”

Whether the G1 becomes Malta’s next domestic staple or ends up as an expensive Christmas toy, one thing is clear: the future is no longer knocking—it has kicked open the door, priced to move, and speaking better Maltese than some expats. As the robot itself chirped at the end of its SmartCity demo, “Nispera li narawk dalwaqt!”—hope to see you soon. The island has 90 days to decide if it’s ready to say Ħelow back.