EDITOR'S NOTE: The following story has been updated to include a statement from Realbotix
Salamanca Superintendent of Schools Dr. Mark Beehler is addressing concerns over the implementation of an AI-powered humanoid robot inside the classroom for the coming school year.
In June, AI-robotics company Realbotix announced it would launch Optio, its AI teacher’s assistant, in a pilot program at Salamanca City Central School District on the Seneca Nation Reservation in New York.
According to the company's release, "students interact with personalized avatars trained in district curriculum, delivering educationally regulated support, concept reinforcement, individual tutoring, and 24/7 homework support across multiple languages."
At that time, Beehler was quoted as saying, "With strong school-specific safeguards for content and privacy, this tool removes the risk of exposure to inappropriate, inaccurate, or biased information. It enables personalized learning, supports students outside the school walls, and better meets the needs of diverse and reluctant learners." He added, "This partnership gives all students controlled, equitable access to safe and powerful AI resources while fostering learning — not replacing it.”
And it was this sentiment Beehler shared with WKBW on Monday.
"Artificial intelligence is already in schools; most of it is unregulated open source," Beehler told WKBW. "Some schools are simply saying we're not going to utilize AI in our classroom setting, and then they'll dedicate some resources to ensuring that AI can't be used, or if it is used, it's picked up and then causes academic concerns. Our philosophy is a little bit different."
Beehler continued, "We know that AI is going to be a significant factor for our students in the workplace. And we have worked with robotics to develop a safe and secure artificial intelligence platform that is specific just to Salamanca schools at this point in time and has safeguards, particularly for student privacy and data, regarding their data."
WATCH: Salamanca Superintendent sets the record straight on AI-powered robot coming to the classroom
According to the superintendent, the AI system is closed, and all data will remain on campus on a cloud server rather than in an off-site data center. Additionally, "Realbotics will have no personally identifiable information about our particular students," Beehler said.
Following the announcement, education organizations slammed the project.
“We want our children prepared for the future, including a strong foundation in STEAM, not just STEM education, learning how to create, build, problem-solve, and engage with technology. The suggestion that our communities don't want these opportunities for their children is a convenient fiction that others know what's best for us better than we do ourselves," said Zakiyah Shaakir-Ansari, co-executive director, Alliance for Quality Education, in a statement provided to WKBW.
“A robot in place of a human educator does nothing to close that opportunity gap. Families have every right to ask why those resources are being spent on a robot, profiting a corporation instead of investing in teachers, counselors, and other supports for students."
As mentioned, Beehler says that the robot will not replace any human teachers.
"The robot is stationary. It's not like we're going to see this walking through the halls." Beehler said.
The superintendent said that the program will be rolled out "slowly." The robotic assistant will be used in only one classroom beginning in August, and the AI software itself will be available only to teachers, juniors, and seniors.
As he described, "Sally will act, in many ways, sort of as a tutor, after hours for students."
He continued, "It has the curriculum that we utilize in our science, technology, engineering, art, and math programs, so it can assist students in those particular areas, with learning. It is not going to replace teachers. It doesn't replace the learning."
"Sally doesn't provide an answer. It assists the student in getting to an answer," Beehler said.
"Realbotix does not manufacture companion dolls," Beehler said. "I think it's also important to recognize that technologies can be utilized across a variety of, we'll call them genres: my phone, my computer; I could certainly look up inappropriate information. I could also watch a church service, or I could learn how to fix an air conditioner on my car. That doesn't mean that because there might be information on the computer that is inappropriate, I no longer utilize a computer."
He continued, "It's important to recognize that we need to be teaching our students how to use available tools appropriately, not simply to forbid them because there's a potential, or some other company utilizes it for, something that we don't approve of."
As mentioned, the program will be launched at the start of the coming academic year; however, a presentation on its implementation will be given at Tuesday's Board of Education meeting at 5:30 p.m.
Realbotix responded to WKBW's request for comment with the following:
“Realbotix develops and manufactures AI-powered humanoid robots and embodied AI systems for commercial applications, with a particular focus on healthcare and education. Its technology combines conversational AI with a physical humanoid platform capable of natural interaction and lifelike expressions. Realbotix’s products are designed to support human engagement and expand access to information and services while complementing the work of educators and other professionals.
Realbotix and Salamanca City Central School District announced a limited pilot for fall 2026 involving Optio, an AI-powered educational assistant, and one new Realbotix M-Series humanoid unit. The program is intended to complement, not replace, teachers by giving students supervised access to emerging AI and robotics tools as part of the district’s existing STEM curriculum. The partnership also gives educators an opportunity to evaluate these technologies in a controlled classroom environment under district oversight.
For clarity, some media reports have falsely connected the Salamanca project to an adult product or adult-products business. The Salamanca robot is a newly manufactured, purpose-built educational unit; no existing product or hardware is being modified or repurposed for the school. Realbotix LLC focuses exclusively on non-adult commercial applications, including healthcare and education. No adult-products company has any involvement in the Salamanca project or in any product or project developed by Realbotix LLC. Separate companies.
The physical unit has not yet been deployed. Additional details regarding its implementation will be determined in coordination with the district.”
