Science fiction robots tend to come from one of two production lines: helpful protocol droids like C-3PO or cyborg Terminators hell-bent on destroying humanity. Few sci-fi storytellers imagined a future where robots would be programmed to master the art of interior decorating. Fortunately for the design-challenged, present-day roboticists have.

RoboFold

For decades, robots have shaped material for cars. Furniture is next. Photo: RoboFold

RoboFold robots treat steel like large origami pieces, bending them into a shape fit for a living room. What does it take to become a furniture-designing robot? A multi-ton arm that can manipulate a 200-pound sheet of materialoh, and a folded-metal-enthusiast creator. That doesnt hurt either.

British designer and RoboFold founder Gregory Epps spent the last decade obsessing about bending metals. He even completed a masters degree at the Royal College of Art that focused on the tools and algorithms that would best shape the material. All the training and tinkering paid off.

Folded designs cut down on material waste. Photo: RoboFold

With RoboFold, designers can fill a room with rippling metal sculptures or futuristic furniture that would be nearly impossible to make by hand or too costly with traditional production processes. Designers just specify their preferred shape via Rhino CAD and the bot jumps into action, carefully working the material into anything from a fashionable coffee table to an angular building facade.

Artaic Mosaics

This is not a photo. It's a robot-made mosaic. Photo: Artaic

Ted Acworth is working to revitalize a craft from the Romanswith robots. His company, Artaic, designs bots that are skilled in the art of mosaic making. Inspired by the pick and place bots used in electronics manufacturing, Acworths clan painstakingly assembles tile images fit for a high-end wash room or the bottom of a rockstars pool.

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Interior-Decorating Androids, Coming to a Living Room Near You