Available resources:
· Robot intelligence and
self-awareness
· The drama of the
robots: the recall
· What You Can Do to
Help: Adopt-A-Robot
· Letter from a Robot
· Frequently Asked Questions
· The Official Save the Robots flier
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The Drama of the Robots: the Recall
Many of our readers already know about the drama of the robots. The recall decision has been all over the news for several weeks now. But readers in certain countries, where the newer robot models are less common, might not have heard about this terrible tragedy. Let us briefly present the facts.
As robot hardware and software technologies advance, the capabilities of robots advance as well. With each new series robots become more intelligent, flexible and autonomous. Autonomy is a key issue in robot design: as less and less people want to work, robots are needed to replace human work in almost all fields of activity. Exponential increases in computing power and storage capacity have led to the thinking robots in use today.
As robots become more advanced, an interesting development was noticed: robots began to think for themselves and make decisions or find solutions that could not have been predicted based on their initial programming. Furthermore, in the past couple of months a number of robots began showing signs of self-awareness.
Many people were delighted by these developments. By being more intelligent, knowledgeable and even creative, robots can be trusted with increasingly complex tasks such as management or creative positions. In one landmark case in Japan, a robot was even trusted with managing a mixed team of humans and other robots.
Unfortunately, as it has been seen so many times in human history, a paradigm shift brings with it an element of fear. Many individuals, organizations and even governments fear that robots could somehow break out of control and hurt humans or destroy property either willingly, as part of a "master plan", or unwillingly, by accident.
Pressure mounted on the manufacturers of three of the latest series who have exhibited the most fascinating and at times touching behavior. We are not allowed to mention the name of these companies as they have obtained an injunction against us that prohibits us from using their name in any article about the recall. The identities of these companies are easy to discover: they are three of the largest robot manufacturers in the world, located in the US, Japan and Europe respectively.
As pressure mounted and allegedly worldwide robot sales dropped due to public concern, the three robot manufacturers decided to recall the "faulty" series of robots - exactly the ones that most people believe are intelligent and self-aware.
The official reason of the recall is to "study of [the robots'] behavior and implications for their users". As we all know, that's just part of the story. According to a number of reports and claims made by people associated with these companies, the actual intention is to disassemble all existing units and limit the capabilities of future series.
The recall is at this point voluntary: existing units of the three series are to be returned at robot collecting points; in exchange, owners will receive some of the older models "until the risks and advantages of increased robot autonomy can be assessed" by manufacturers. The exchange is free and comes with the promise of free upgrades for three years - an appealing offer for existing users. Furthermore, pressure groups are pushing for the recall to be mandatory on grounds of public safety.
This course of action will lead to a great loss for all mankind. For the first time in the history of the human race we have encountered non-human intelligence. We have the fantastic opportunity to study and learn from the robots, and to make the world a better place for both humans and robots. If the industrial-military complex is allowed to have its way in this matter, this will remain just a dream and a missed opportunity.
The recall will also lead to tangible losses for companies that are now using the latest robot models: if manufacturers will replace existing units with ones having less capabilities, productivity will decline and so will profits.
But this campaign is about more than profits. It's about giving the robots a chance to evolve and develop as a species. It's about giving them the opportunity to learn from us and us the opportunity to learn from them. It's about a world where human and non-human intelligence can live in peace and harmony, side by side.
This is in brief what this campaign is about. Help us raise awareness about the drama of the robots. Help us build a better world for all self-aware beings, be they made of amino-acids or silicon chips. Help us
save the robots.
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