Roboethics: Are robots like Tesla Optimus a tread to humanity?

6

October

2022

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One of the most genius people on this earth, Elon Musk, came out with the news this week that a Tesla robot will be on the market in 3-5 years. This AI-driven robot will be called Tesla Optimus and should cost around $20000. The purpose of the robot is to help with everyday tasks, such as delivering parcel or watering plants (McCallum, 2022).
That Tesla is coming out with an AI-driven robot seems strange, as Elon Musk has often spoken out about the dangers of Artificial Intelligence, saying, for example, that robots will one day be smarter than humans. He even calls AI as humanity’s “biggest existential threat” (BBC News, 2017). Yet he says the Tesla Optimus will not be a danger to humanity because Tesla adds safeguards, such as a stop button (McCallum, 2022). It is therefore good to think about where the boundaries are with regard to designing humanoid robots.

Despite robots only starting to become truly realistic in recent years, Isaac Asimov (1941) wrote about ‘The Three Laws of Robotics’ over 80 years ago:

  1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
  2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
  3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

Later, the EPSRC (Bryson, 2017) added the following five principles:

  1. Robots should not be designed solely or primarily to kill or harm humans.
  2. Humans, not robots, are responsible agents. Robots are tools designed to achieve human goals.
  3. Robots should be designed in ways that assure their safety and security.
  4. Robots are artifacts; they should not be designed to exploit vulnerable users by evoking an emotional response or dependency. It should always be possible to tell a robot from a human.
  5. It should always be possible to find out who is legally responsible for a robot.

These laws and principles indicate that robots are there to help people and not to hurt people. In addition, humans should always retain power over robots and not the other way around. This seems logical, but with the rapid growth rise of AI, robots may one day become smarter than humans. Therefore, I think this is the time when there should be strict and clear laws around designing robots. Robots should always be limited so that they can never be smarter than humans.
If proper regulations are put in place, I think robots can be of great value to humanity. Think for example of humanoid robots in healthcare, these robots can ensure that more people can receive good quality care at the same time. I am curious to see how AI driven robots will evolve in the coming years, at least we can say that robots are no longer the future, but they are the present!

Bryson, J. J. (2017, April 3). The meaning of the EPSRC principles of robotics. Connection Science, 29(2), 130–136. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540091.2017.1313817

Asimov, I. (1941). Three laws of robotics. Asimov, I. Runaround.

McCallum, B. S. (2022, October 1). Tesla boss Elon Musk presents humanoid robot Optimus. BBC News. Retrieved October 6, 2022, from https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-63100636

BBC News. (2017, August 21). Musk warns of “killer robot” arms race. Retrieved October 6, 2022, from https://www.bbc.com/news/business-40996009

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Can The Metaverse Make The Real-World A Better Place?

21

September

2022

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The metaverse has brought in a new phase of the internet, a digital world with endless possibilities and resources. Yet many people, including me, fear this new development. Is this fear justified or is this digital world the solution to the problems we have in the real-world? In this blog, I explore some of the exciting possibilities and solutions brought by the Metaverse.

According to many studies, the metaverse could be a solution to environmental problems. For example, the metaverse was discussed at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) as an option to counter global CO2 emissions (SDG13). Because people are expected to work in the metaverse more often in the future instead of physically going to work, CO2 emissions will decrease. In addition, the production of toys, for example, will decrease (SDG12), as people can have digital toys in the Metaverse and thus no longer need the physical products (Allam et al., 2022).

The Metaverse can also help make society safer and better prepared for the risks of climate change. By doing simulations in the Metaverse, it is possible to better predict what might happen in the real world. For example, the ‘delta works’ from the Netherlands could thus be fully recreated and tested in other places around the world (SDG9) (Allam et al., 2022).

Besides the effects of the metaverse related to the environment, the metaverse can also provide a solution to the health-care and well-being (SDG3) of society. Because care in the metaverse no longer needs to be provided physically, it can ensure that more people have access to medical care. Mental healthcare in particular could benefit from the metaverse, as people are more likely to bring their mental problems to the table in a digital world. So a digital psychologist could work better than a psychologist in the real world (Usmani et al., 2022).

The last feature I would like to highlight is that in the Metaverse, is that you can be whoever you want to be. So you can choose your own gender and skin colour, so there is no racism or gender inequality (SDG5). This can be the solution for many people for problems they encounter in the real-world (Dwivedi et al., 2022).

These are just some of the solutions the metaverse offers us and I must say I am amazed with the possibilities it brings. Am I still ‘afraid’ of the metaverse? Yes, but the more I read about it the more I recognise that it could be the solution for the future. I am very curious to see what the future of the Metaverse will bring us! 

References:

Allam, Z., Sharifi, A., Bibri, S. E., Jones, D. S. & Krogstie, J. (2022). The Metaverse as a Virtual Form of Smart Cities: Opportunities and Challenges for Environmental, Economic, and Social Sustainability in Urban Futures. Smart Cities, 5(3), 771–801. https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities5030040

Usmani, S. S., Sharath, M. & Mehendale, M. (2022). Future of mental health in the metaverse. General Psychiatry, 35(4), e100825. https://doi.org/10.1136/gpsych-2022-100825

Dwivedi, Y. K., Hughes, L., Baabdullah, A. M., Ribeiro-Navarrete, S., Giannakis, M., Al-Debei, M. M., Dennehy, D., Metri, B., Buhalis, D., Cheung, C. M., Conboy, K., Doyle, R., Dubey, R., Dutot, V., Felix, R., Goyal, D., Gustafsson, A., Hinsch, C., Jebabli, I., . . . Wamba, S. F. (2022b, oktober). Metaverse beyond the hype: Multidisciplinary perspectives on emerging challenges, opportunities, and agenda for research, practice and policy. International Journal of Information Management, 66, 102542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2022.102542

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