Meet Sally, AI-Powered Humanoid Robot To Help Teach High School Students In New York

A school district in western New York is introducing a humanoid robot into classrooms this fall, hoping it will support teachers rather than replace them. The Salamanca City Central School District has partnered with Toronto-based robotics company Realbotix to bring an AI-powered robot named Sally to its high school. The district says the robot will work as a teaching assistant alongside educators and an AI learning platform.

Costing about $57,600, Sally has a lifelike appearance with silicone skin, long brown hair, and movable arms and hands. While she can gesture during lessons, she cannot walk because her legs are stationary.

New York school district to become one of the first in the United States to introduce a humanoid robot in the classroom.

'Sally' will have a Western New York accent and will teach 11th and 12th-grade students at Salamanca High School.

Sally costs less than the average teacher's… pic.twitter.com/gYqAL19QK0

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 19, 2026

Initially, Sally will work only with 11th and 12th grade students in coding, robotics, and artificial intelligence classes that are part of the Woz Ed STEAM curriculum, developed by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak.

"It's exciting but also a bit nerve-wracking. Not everyone is open to much change in education…There was a point in time where people argued, ‘Why do teachers need email accounts?' or ‘Do we really need to have the internet in school?' This is the next iteration of that. And the reality is, AI is already in schools," superintendent Dr Mark Beehler told The Post.

To make interactions feel more natural, the district even requested that Sally speak with a Western New York accent. Officials joked that while outsiders may notice it, locals consider it fairly neutral.

School leaders have repeatedly stressed that the robot is not designed to replace teachers. Instead, Sally will answer questions by prompting students to think through problems themselves rather than simply giving them the answers.

The robot runs on an offline, closed AI system and, according to the district, does not collect personal information, record audio or video, or send student data back to Realbotix.

"The Realbotix educational robot will never replace teachers, staff members, or meaningful human interaction. Instead, it serves as another instructional tool that educators can use to engage students, reinforce classroom learning, and spark curiosity about emerging technologies. It will provide data but will encourage the student to think for themselves and demonstrate a comprehension of the material," the district said in a statement.

Despite those assurances, the initiative has drawn criticism online, with some questioning the use of AI-powered technology in classrooms, particularly in a district serving a disadvantaged community. In response, the school district issued a statement clarifying that Sally is intended only as a classroom aid and that meaningful human interaction will remain at the centre of teaching.