At a press conference at the White House on Wednesday, First Lady Melania Trump appeared with a humanoid robot from Figure AI. They walked together down a red carpet before the robot gave a short speech, saying, “I am grateful to be part of this historic movement to empower children with technology and education.”
Soon after, the robot left the room and vanished.
The unusual event was part of the First Lady’s new initiative, the Fostering the Future Together global summit. This summit brought together international leaders to discuss empowering children through educational technology, including AI.
The event sparked futuristic thoughts of a world where human teachers are replaced by robot educators. During her speech, the First Lady spoke about a future where a humanoid robot would be the ultimate teacher for children.
“Imagine a humanoid educator named Plato,” the First Lady said. “Access to classical studies is now instantaneous – literature, science, art, philosophy, mathematics, and history – Humanity’s entire knowledge is available at home. Plato will provide personalized, adaptive experiences for each student, always patient and available, promoting deeper critical thinking and reasoning.”
“Honored to be invited to the White House by the First Lady Melania Trump,” Figure AI’s X account posted Wednesday.
The First Lady’s ideas look toward the future rather than reflecting current robotics and edtech capabilities. Still, the concept of using AI and technology for automating learning has been gaining popularity in the tech industry and promoted by the White House.
Over the past year, experiments like the Alpha School, using AI to teach children rapidly, have gained attention.
The Trump administration supports these experiments while criticizing the traditional public education system.
Secretary of Education Linda E. McMahon has been working to abolish the Department of Education but also visited an Alpha School campus, praising its educational opportunities.
“Alpha School is reimagining K–12 education by equipping students with practical AI skills for a technology-driven workforce,” the administration recently stated regarding McMahon’s visit.
Melania Trump’s event emphasized the administration’s view on the tech industry’s role in American education, acknowledging the participation of leading American technology companies.