One post on a social network can change a life. This was faced by Masato Nagahiro from Tokyo. 

Masato has been bedridden all his life. When he was one year old, doctors diagnosed him with spinal muscular atrophy. It is a genetic disease that affects muscles. Nagahiro couldn't do daily tasks on his own, or even walk. He graduated from evening school in absentia and enrolled in the University of Communications. But later he dropped out, having lost interest in studying. Masato was worried about his future: it seemed to him bleak and devoid of any prospects. My health did not allow me to find a job or at least a part-time job. The young man thought that he was losing the desire to live on. 

Everything changed when Masato came across a post on a social network. OryLab was looking for pilots for robot avatars at the DAWN restaurant. Nagahiro recalls his thoughts at that moment: "A cafe with robots sounds interesting. Maybe I can work there, because the control is remote. Even if something goes wrong, it's okay. We need to try!"

Masato became one of the first employees of the cafe in 2018. He became a customer service specialist. His task is to remotely control the robot waiter. Together with him, several other robots with their pilots work in the cafe. These are also people experiencing health and mobility problems. But thanks to robotics, they can now do full-fledged work. It is known that at the moment about 90 robot avatar pilots live in Japan and abroad.

September 1, DAWN Restaurant in Tokyo's Nihonbashi district. A typhoon is raging outside the window, but the place is still crowded with customers. Masato controls the robot from home, delivers and serves food to the guests. He notes that he has easily mastered the controls — including using the eye movement that the computer tracks. 

Here Masato is carrying another order. Parents and a child are sitting at a table. A miniature robot serves coffee for adults and apple juice for a child. Jokingly asks: "Have you done your homework yet?" 

Foreigners also often come to the restaurant — Masato practices his English with them. His cheerful manner of communication attracts visitors. Therefore, between robot avatars and guests, you can sometimes hear conversations on a variety of topics.

But it wasn't always like that. Previously, Nagahiro only communicated with family members and guardians. Therefore, it was not easy to work with other people. "I was very worried at first. I was soaked in sweat," he recalls. The support of more experienced fellow pilots helped here. Over time, Masato became more confident.

Masato once underwent a tracheotomy and uses a respirator. In August of this year, he attended a meeting for people who need artificial respiration. The theme of the meeting is "independence". Nagahiro explained what the word meant to him. "It's about having friends in your life who will support you and creating a place that you will feel like a part of." Nagahiro's personal development was also noted by his family. He has become more independent and can now confidently make his own decisions. 

Masato's world has expanded thanks to technology and new friends. He created his own computer game called "A robot girl changes my life as a bedridden boy" [A robot girl changes my bedridden life - English]. He took the cafe, himself and fellow pilots as the basis for the plot. The game was developed and released for sale. Masato also never thought that he would be able to play sports. But he did it too — it was enough to attach the tracks to a small robot OriHime.

This is the same Masato who used to think he didn't want to live anymore. Now he wants to play the violin, play sports and 3D modeling. And this is only a small part of the many activities that he wants to try. "Even if I live a hundred years, it won't be enough for me," Nagahiro says.