Ban autonomous weapons, urge AI experts including
Hawking, Musk and Wozniak
Over 1,000 experts in robotics have signed an open letter
in a bid to prevent a "global AI arms race".
by Luke Westaway July 27, 2015 5:09 AM PDT
Robotics experts from around the world have called for a
ban on autonomous weapons, warning that an artificial intelligence revolution
in warfare could spell disaster for humanity.
The open letter, published by the Future of Life
Institute, has been signed by hundreds of AI and robotics researchers, as well
as high-profile persons in the science and tech world including Stephen
Hawking, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. Celebrated
philosopher and cognitive scientist Daniel Dennett is among other endorsers
who've added their names to the letter.
Developments in machine intelligence and robotics are
already impacting the tech landscape -- for instance, camera-equipped drones
are prompting new debates on personal privacy and self-driving cars have the
potential to revolutionise the automotive industry. However, many experts are
concerned that progress in the field of AI could offer applications for warfare
that take humans out of the loop.
The open letter defines autonomous weapons as those that
"select and engage targets without human intervention". It suggests
that armed quadcopters that hunt and kill people are an example of the kind of
AI that should be banned to prevent a "global AI arms race."
"Autonomous weapons are ideal for tasks such as
assassinations, destabilising nations, subduing populations and selectively
killing a particular ethnic group," the letter continues. "We
therefore believe that a military AI arms race would not be beneficial for
humanity."
Speaking to CNET a few weeks ago, roboticist Noel
Sharkey, who has signed his name to this latest petition, warned that the
killer robots of real life will be a far cry from the fantastical sci-fi
depictions we see on screen.
CONCERN OVER ROBOT INTELLIGENCE
"They will look like tanks," Sharkey said.
"They will look like ships, they will look like jet fighters."
"An autonomous weapons system is a weapon that, once
activated or launched, decides to select its own targets and kills them without
further human intervention," explains Sharkey, who is a member of the
Campaign to Stop Killer Robots -- an organisation launched in 2013 that's
pushing for an international treaty to outlaw autonomous weapons. "Our aim
is to prevent the kill decision being given to a machine."
The open letter sites examples of successful
international agreements regarding other types of weapons, such as chemical or
blinding laser weapons. "Just as most chemists and biologists have no
interest in building chemical or biological weapons, most AI researchers have
no interest in building AI weapons -- and do not want others to tarnish their
field by doing so, potentially creating a major public backlash against AI that
curtails its future societal benefits," the letter reads.
While the latest open letter is concerned specifically
with allowing lethal machines to kill without human intervention, several big
names in the tech world have offered words of caution of the subject of machine
intelligence in recent times. Earlier this year Microsoft's Bill Gates said he
was "concerned about super intelligence," while last May physicist
Stephen Hawking voiced questions over whether artificial intelligence could be
controlled in the long-term. Several weeks ago a video surfaced of a drone that
appeared to have been equipped to carry and fire a handgun.
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