Can This Candy Cannon Save Halloween?

It’s clear by now that Halloween in 2020 is going to look a little different than in previous years. The CDC has already put out their own guidelines for how to handle the candy-based holiday safely, and it sure looks like traditional methods of trick or treating will require some modifications in order to stay safe and socially distanced.

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Instead of packing it in and punting on Halloween until 2021, the good news is that folks seem to be using their time at home to come up with clever workarounds to get candy in the hands of eager trick or treaters. We’ve already seen the candy chute, now get a load of the candy cannon.

Whereas the candy chute used a tube and a little gravity to get the job done, this invention made by Texan Luke Keyes uses a projectile tube capable of launching candy through the air, landing a safe distance away for kids to collect. Based on video evidence, it sure looks like this thing has a range of more than six feet.

As if that somehow wasn’t enough, it looks like Keyes has put together an even more high-tech way to get candy to sugar-starved children without the need for unnecessary human contact. Dubbed “Arty,” Keye’s candy robot has apparently been in the works for years. Though some rightly fear automation taking human jobs, this candy serving robot’s debut couldn’t come at a better time.

While Halloween parties in the Keyes’ neighborhood won’t be happening this year, there’s no doubt that applying some inventiveness and ingenuity will make what could otherwise be a bit of a disappointing holiday into something worth celebrating. Let’s just hope the robot doesn’t become self-aware and turn against its creator, because that would probably be a little too spooky.