Alexis Ohanian Says Robots Will Handle Your Chores So Parents Can Finally Breathe

Burdened parents will finally have a break from everyday chores–soon enough, it seems, thanks to speedy progress in robotics.

Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit and tech investor, is convinced that home robots will become standard equipment in contemporary parenting in the near future.

Addressing the Milken Institute Global Conference, Ohanian forecasted that within the next few years, high-income families will start making their lives easier with highly capable robots to accomplish everyday tasks such as cleaning, washing clothes, and arranging groceries.

The Emergence of Home Robots Among Higher-Income Families

Alexis Ohanian Says Robots Will Handle Your Chores So Parents

Ohanian, who has two daughters with tennis superstar Serena Williams, compared the future wave of domestic robots to the advent of the washing machine. Referencing a TED Talk by Swedish doctor Hans Rosling, he described how the washing machine radically changed home life, particularly for women.

For him, robotics could be the next revolutionary step for families juggling work and home life.

"For women, for mothers, they spent such a disproportionate amount of their time doing laundry by hand, that when this machine showed up in people's lives, it was a major, major revolution in terms of women's lib and freedom and time," Ohanian explained during the panel.

He also said that the future generation of home robots will render today's Roombas obsolete. The AI-powered assistants will not just clean but also perform tasks typically left to parents, particularly mothers.

Ohanian said this shift will most likely start in upper-income families but predicts, as with everything else, that technology prices will come down, and more people will be able to access it. The outcome will be a huge change in how families operate and who does what within the home.

Leveling the Parenting Playing Field Through Technology

The panel discussion, focusing on achieving balance in contemporary parenting, featured such distinguished voices as "Fair Play" author Eve Rodsky and Good Inside CEO Becky Kennedy. According to Business Insider, both stressed that although chores such as laundry and shopping are significant, parenting entails deeper aspects that cannot be delegated.

Rodsky emphasized the need for authentic partnership within the home. She said that the imbalance at home will continue until men come to their full strength. She only meant that men should still do the task of performing "traditionally maternal roles."

Promoting Parental Leave and Father Involvement

Ohanian has been a strong supporter of paid parental leave, especially for fathers. He played a key role in advocating for a 12-week paid leave policy for federal employees, signed into law under former President Donald Trump's administration in 2019.

His own evolution since becoming a dad was, by his description, "borderline spiritual." It changed his focus and motivated him to create technologies and push policies that benefit parents, particularly those in underprivileged communities.

A Tech-Backed Parenting Revolution Is Coming

As robotics and artificial intelligence advance, Ohanian sees a future where parenting is augmented, not automated by machines. He hopes these technologies will liberate time, alleviate stress, and make homes more equal, where mothers and fathers can flourish personally and professionally.