PETALING JAYA, April 10 — Students at the Business Breakthrough (BBT) University in Tokyo received their diplomas with the help of robots as Covid-19 cases continue to rise in Japan.

The robots, known as Newme, were developed by ANA Holdings and got suited up for the occasion with graduation gowns and caps, reported Reuters.

Students logged onto Zoom from their homes and their faces were displayed on a tablet fixed to the robots’ heads.

They were able to control the movement of the robots and direct them towards the stage, where BBT University president Kenichi Ohmae conveyed his congratulations and placed diplomas on racks attached to the robots’ mid-sections.

The experience was a surreal one for the students as several other Japanese universities have cancelled their spring graduation ceremonies in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has resulted in more than 5,000 infections in Japan as of April 9.

“I think this is truly a novel experience to receive a certificate in a public area while I am in a private space,” Kazuki Tamura said through his robot avatar after receiving his master’s degree diploma.

BBT University hopes to inspire other academic institutions to follow in its footsteps as many countries around the world urge its citizens to practice social distancing.

In related news, Japanese elementary school students built a virtual graduation hall in Minecraft after their real-life ceremony was cancelled due to the virus.

Though the event was informal, Twitter user @backyennew said his son and his friends had great fun recreating their school’s assembly hall in the video game.