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UK PM mocked for robotic manners after creation attend parliament

A robot in British parliament reminds online users of how robotic their prime minister is.

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Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May dances a few steps as she takes the stage to give her keynote address on the fourth and final day of the Conservative Party Conference 2018 at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham, central England, on October 3, 2018. (AFP photo)

British Prime Minister Theresa May has been mocked again for her “robotic” behavior, as social media users draw on a session of the parliament where a creation was invited to respond to lawmakers’ questions on the future of technology.

Users rushed to the Twitter on Tuesday to amuse themselves with the chance to heap more mockery on Theresa May, a premier who has become known to them as “Maybot” because of her propensity to dance in a robotic manner and speak with methodic precision.

That came after the British parliament invited a robot for a hearing on “the fourth industrial revolution” and the artificial intelligence (AI).

A video grab from footage broadcast by the UK Parliament's Parliamentary Recording Unit (PRU) shows a robot called Pepper attending an Education Select Committee hearing in London on October 16, 2018. (AFP photo)

The robot, called Pepper, apparently female with a tablet computer on her chest, amused MPs on the education committee with her answers on what positions the humans would have in the future world dominated by the AI.

“ ... we (robots) will always need the soft skills that are unique to humans: to sense, make, and drive value from technology,” said Pepper.

The answers prompted Twitter users to draw new comparisons between May and robots, especially a month after the premier sparked controversy with her odd way of dancing during a Conservative Party conference in Birmingham.

A combination of pictures created on October 3, 2018 shows Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May dances a few steps as she takes the stage to give her keynote address on the fourth and final day of the Conservative Party Conference 2018 at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham, central England, on October 3, 2018. (AFP photo)

“NEW: A witness gave a robotic performance in front of a Commons committee? but it wasn't Theresa May,” read a tweet.

“Theresa May is looking almost human these days,” said another user.

Someone else said Pepper’s performance in the parliament was “fantastic”, but asked whether the robot could “do the Maybot”.

May has been subject to renewed criticism over the past months for her way of negotiating a deal with the European Union on Britain’s withdrawal from the bloc. Many believe her rigid manners in dealing with critics have affected the way talks are proceeding with the EU.