Even the robots don’t have job security at Google parent Alphabet. The tech giant pulled the plug on high-priced automatons — which separated trash and squeegeed cafeteria tables — created by robotics ...

During a recent visit to Alphabet’s X lab, I drained my coffee and left the compostable cup on a tray marked “Cans & Bottles.” The transgression was soon mended. Twenty minutes later, a wheeled, ...