Is there a way to ensure robotic fighter planes do not mistake civilians for enemy soldiers and kill innocent people? Is “system malfunction” a justifiable defence for contravening the Geneva Convention? Should robotic sex dolls resembling children be allowed?
Such are the concerns of a group of leading roboticists, who met this week in Palermo, Sicily, to discuss measures to prevent robots unnecessarily harming people. “Security, safety and sex are the big concerns,” says Henrik Christensen, chairman of the European Robotics Network (EURON).
In the next few years robots will begin entering our homes and workplaces, making guidelines to…
