Scientists at the Hanson Robotics have recently created a humanoid robot called Sophia. In a UN-hosted conference in Geneva this week on how artificial intelligence can be used to benefit humanity while speaking, she got the main attraction. The event comes as a concern about growing rapid changes in technology.
When asking about artificial intelligence, she said by insisting the pros outweigh the cons, “AI is good for the world. It will assist people in various ways.”
Sophia smiles mischievously, bats her eyelids and cracked a joke. You will also mistake her for a human once you see her in real without the mess of cables at the back of her head. She has some impressive capabilities. Yet, she does not have consciousness.
She said for AI, “Work is underway to make artificial intelligence emotionally smart, to care about people. we will never replace people, but we can be your friends and helpers.”
But she accepted that people should question the consequences of new technology. Although the rise of the robots is the growing impact they will have on human jobs and economies.
Even automation and AI expanding rapidly in all sectors. It even indicates that up to 85 percent of jobs in developing countries could be at risk.
Sophia’s creator, David Hanson explained, “There are legitimate concerns about the future of jobs, about the future of the economy, because when businesses apply automation, it tends to accumulate resources in the hands of very few.”
In future, AI is expected to revolutionize healthcare and education, especially in rural areas with shortages of doctors and teachers. But advances in robotic technology have sparked growing fears that humans could lose control.
According to the Sophia, Elders will have more company, autistic children will have endlessly patient teachers.
Salil Shetty, Amnesty International chief said, “We need to have the principles in place, we need to have the checks and balances. It indirectly warns that AI is a black box… There are algorithms being written which nobody understands.”
“The technology is also increasingly being used in the United States for predictive policing. Where algorithms based on historic trends could “reinforce existing biases” against people of certain ethnicities.”
Shetty asked, “What happens when (Sophia fully) wakes up or some other machine, servers running missile defense or managing the stock market?”
The answer is to make the machines care about us. We only need to teach them, love.