Robopocalypse

Experts said that robots have to be trained properly to avoid potentially dangerous situations.

17:18 01 July 2016

Poorly trained robot, just as poorly trained dogs, can present a real threat to society, experts have claimed.

 

A panel of experts at a Royal Academy of Engineering event in London said that humans have to be educated about interacting with robots for their own safety. They added that instead of being too concerned about artificially intelligent machines causing “robopocalypse”, people should pay more attention on those people who tell robots what to do.

 

Professor Darwin Caldwell, director of the Department of Advanced Robotics, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia in Italy, said: "The problem isn't with robots, it's with people."

 

He added that people treating service robots “as toy” and fail to give clear orders, could have dire consequences.

 

Meanwhile, Professor Alan Winfield, theme leader in swarm robotics at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, said that we need to "innovate conscientiously" because "if robots are not safe, people won't trust them."

 

The panel said that super intelligent robots are not expected to cause serious problems.

                                                                                            

"For the foreseeable future, robots will be under control", said Professor Tony Gillespie, visiting professor at UCL.

 

Dr Natasha McCarthy, head of policy at the British Academy called for a “debate about robots in society” so ethical codes for droids can be established.