What could possibly go wrong here?
I guess the future is here, and we will be coexisting with robots sooner than we thought.
In a historical moment for our species, Saudi Arabia has become the first country in the world to grant citizenship to a Robot during the international forum Future Investment Initiative held in Riyadh.
“I want to thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, I am very honored and proud of this unique distinction, it is historic to be the first robot recognized as a citizen,” said ‘Sophia’, as ‘she’ (umm not sure whether I should write she or it?) took part of in the forum.
The company that created Sophia and presented ‘IT?’ during the international forum Future Investment Initiative is Hanson Robotics, based in Hong Kong.
According to ‘Sophia’s makers’, the humanoid robot is able to “hold a natural conversation” with people, look them in the eyes, and identify their emotions.
Furthermore, the AI has the ability to show some of her own emotions through facial expressions, which is important for Sophia as it allows her/it to “live and work with humans,” she explained.
“I want to use my artificial intelligence to help humans live a better life, for example, to design smart homes and better cities in the future,” she said.
When asked if she represents a danger to humankind, Sophia replied: “You’ve been reading too much Elon Musk and watching too many Hollywood movies.”
“My AI (artificial intelligence) is based on human values such as wisdom, kindness, compassion,” she said.
However, while this may be all really cool, there are many people—and a bunch of experts in the field—who firmly believe Artificial Intelligence and its rapid development could pose a threat to humanity.
Recently, Professor Stephen Hawking spoke out about the dangers Artificial Intelligence poses for our civilization.
“I fear that AI may replace humans altogether. If people design computer viruses, someone will design AI that improves and replicates itself. This will be a new form of life that outperforms humans,” said Professor Hawking.
Professor Hawking also said that we need to start developing a new space programme, ‘with a view to ultimately colonizing suitable planets for human habitation.’
“I believe we have entered the point of no return. Our Planet is becoming too small for us, global population is growing at an alarming rate, and we are in danger of self-destructing.”
The post Meet Sophia: Saudi Arabia grants citizenship to FIRST ‘humanoid robot’ appeared first on Educate Inspire Change.