Robotics companies are concerned about the weaponization of their products. They point in particular to the increasing accessibility of their robots and the use of weapons by people who are not competent in this field.
Robots have long entered the military field, but the deployment of these products has made them accessible to a larger audience. Boston Dynamics and five other companies warn in an open letter, published by Axiosabout their concerns about the misuse of their use and the impact on public trust in robots.
The letter first notes that robots are becoming more accessible to the general public and Boston Dynamics is concerned about “misuse.”
Consequences for public trust
The letter also notes that armed uses of robots by unskilled people will damage public trust in the technology: “We now feel a renewed urgency in light of growing public concern in recent months, caused by a small number of people who obviously have made public their impromptu practices for building commercially available robots.”
In concrete terms, the companies commit to closely monitor their customers’ uses of their robots and explore possible solutions that could mitigate or reduce these risks. Boston Dynamics asks other robotics companies to do the same.
Source: BFM TV
