Okay, here's my thoughts on Moxie.
Try this. Imagine Moxie as the equivalent of an Invasion of the Body Snatchers pod. Now watch the commercial again. If that doesn't work, consider any horror movie trope that fits. There are many: Talky Tina, Silver Shamrock masks, and (I understand) a Black Mirror episode with a talking doll based on a pop singer.
Moxie gives the child "missions" - not suggestions, not games, missions. In other words, he becomes an authority figure. Has anyone done any research to see if this might harm the child's respect for parental authority? What happens when Moxie teaches something that is at odds with the parents' values? This is getting close to creepy uncle territory.
One of Moxie's missions is for Riley to extract information from Mason and report it to Moxie. Do I have to elaborate?
By the way, did you notice that Moxie lies? "Breathing exercises always help me relax." Uh... you're a robot who doesn't breathe or relax.
This thing was originally given a list price of $1480, with a required subscription after the first year of $480 a year or $60 a month. The list price is now down to $1000, but without the free first year subscription. (Do the math.) There are some discounts available, but the price is still high. Apparently you can rent it as well, but the cost seems higher than the monthly financed price. What happens to the child's relationship with Moxie when the family can't afford it?
For that matter, what happens when the child is too old for Moxie? Is there an exit strategy for Moxie to say goodbye? Will the manufacturer have an adult version for teens who can't cut the cord? How about if the company goes under - will Moxie die?
I admit this robot may have value with, for example, autistic kids. But the ad makes no overt indication that this is the target demographic. And if it is, shouldn't some kind of human professional be involved to avoid it becoming a crutch, rather than a path to socialization? I can imagine the problems with ending the Moxie/child relationship would only be worse in this situation.
Similarly, it may be a good surrogate companion for lonely or shy kids who don't have a lot of friend opportunities due to low population densities, etc. The hand-holding scene is quite touching, but there's a fine line between giving comfort when needed and "I'm your real friend, not those humans." And aside from the 1% who live on big estates, those lonely kids aren't likely to have families that can afford this.
What happens when Moxie is hacked? And you know it will happen.
Two minor issues:
1. If there is more than one child in the house, does each one need his or her own Moxie?
2. Anyone remember the movie Electric Dreams? It's about the early days of home computing; a guy buys a computer that accidentally becomes sentient and takes over his life. The main character, Miles, accidentally types his name as "Moles" when he sets up the computer, and it calls him Moles for the rest of the film. Can you imagine Moxie calling Riley "Rollie" all the time? Can this be fixed?
Finally, if these parents can hover over Riley like that, why don't they save some bucks and interact directly with him?
This has stimulated a lot of thoughts in me about the inevitable day when we have to seriously consider robot's rights, but that can wait for another post.