Uncanny Valley
In 1970, robotics professor Masahiro Mori coined the phrase “uncanny valley”, referring to a human repulsion and fear to robots that are close to seeming human, but remain “off”. In his essay, Mori explored the relationship between a robot’s similarity to human form and a human’s affinity toward the robot. He used a “bunraku puppet” as an example of something humans like. He apparently did not have pediophobia.
Citation: https://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/humanoids/the-uncanny-valley