Nowadays it is not an extraordinary thing to observe robots around us. Materials handling, picking, packing, painting and other processes robots, which help in creating new products. Some of them can be used in medicine. Ot, it would be better to mention, more frequently used robots, as window or floor cleaners.
It has always been a fairy tale for humanity that artificial intelligence, interacting with people, can exist. However, it is. Not so much time ago there were created «social» robots that can engage with people and even have their own emotional specter. Not surprisingly that these robots gain information from scientists, taking into consideration their behaviour, reactions to different news, etc. Robots «use artificial intelligence to decide how to act on information received through cameras and other sensors».
Social robots are equipped by various tools which allow them to recognize voices, appearances and plenty of other personal characteristics of every person.
In studies, made in 2015, it was found out that robot didn’t only behave in the ordinary way, but tried to cheat on his competitors in the game rock-paper-scissors. «As soon as the robot cheats, it immediately transitions from being an object to being an agent.» Surprisingly , how fast we rose from creating computers and button phones to intelligence like us, who can be not only clever and funny, but foxy and very unpredictable.
The biggest advantage is that social robots can help kids with autism to recover. Autism has become very common illness nowadays, so it is unbelievably awesome, that thanks to modern technologies we can help these kids. So, from the one side, it is a good way to simplify human’s lives.
On the other hand, as it was told billion times before me, it can reduce number of working places and the need in people at all. According to statistics, consumer robots sales reached almost 6 billion dollars in 2018 and it is expected this number to be increased to 19 billion dollars in the next 6 years.
Despite everything, we have to get used to social robots, walking around city streets, giving us their mechanical smiles, communicating, making jokes and playing with our children.”Robots that engage with people are absolutely the future. There’s no question that’s where robotics is moving,”says Brian Scassellati, director of the Social Robotics Lab at Yale University.
References:
https://www.apa.org/monitor/2018/01/cover-social-robots
https://bigthink.com/technology-innovation/new-technologies-2019
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/social-robots-play-nicely-with-others/
Such a fast development surprises and scares at the same time. There so many advantages that sometimes we forget about possible cosequences of introducing robots everywhere. Maybe soon we won’t need real friends, all we will do is go to the nearest robot store and buy ourself an artificial interlocutor. Well-known proverb “You can’t buy friendship for money” will not exist anymore. It is rather sad…
It is scary indeed. Not even friendship. Like, an entire premise of it is kind of messed up I guess. Perhaps, the robots would one day substitute not only friends, wives, husbands, etc., but also… us? Oof.