Robot’s cross-country hitchhike hasn’t left Massachusetts

As pre-game activity begins, hitchBOT rests on the wall along the first base line before a baseball game at Fenway Park between the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers in Boston, Friday, July 24, 2015. The robot's hitchhiking journey across the United States took a detour to Fenway. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) As pre-game activity begins, hitchBOT rests on the wall along the first base line before a baseball game at Fenway Park between the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers in Boston, Friday, July 24, 2015. The robot's hitchhiking journey across the United States took a detour to Fenway. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

By Associated Press July 24, 2015 1 min read

BOSTON (AP) – A robot’s hitchhiking journey across the U.S. is off to a slow start.

The robot named hitchBOT caught its first ride in Marblehead, Massachusetts, last week, bound for San Francisco, but it still hasn’t left the state.

Instead, it has bounced around the Boston area and was briefly taken to sea. On Friday, the humanoid robot took in a Red Sox game.

The robot is immobile and relies on strangers to transport it from place to place. It’s the creation of two researchers in Canada who wanted to study how people interact with robots. The robot automatically documents its travels on social media.

Previously hitchBOT took 26 days to travel across Canada. Its creators said it had a slow start there, too, but then quickly zipped across the country.