Over 100 experts in artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, including the billionaire Elon Musk, have called on the United Nations (UN) to ban the development of "killer robots" before the technology is used in warfare, reports the BBC.
In an open letter to the UN, the experts say the rise in companies developing AI systems that may be "repurposed to develop autonomous weapons" could lead to "the third revolution in warfare."
The 116 experts who signed the paper say these weapons "permit armed conflict to be fought at a scale greater than ever", adding that the UN does not have long to act before the technology falls into the wrong hands.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It says that AI systems can be used as "weapons of terror, weapons that despots and terrorists use against innocent populations and weapons hacked to behave in undesirable ways."
The letter calls on the UN to add these autonomous systems to the "list of weapons banned under the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW)", says the BBC.
The Guardian reports that "experts have previously warned that AI technology has reached a point where the deployment of autonomous weapons is feasible within years".
Despite arguments that "AI can be used to make the battlefield a safer place for military personnel", the newspaper says "experts fear that offensive weapons that operate on their own would lower the threshold of going to battle and result in greater loss of human life."
In 2015, a similar letter was signed by "thousands of researchers" warning the UN of the "dangers of autonomous weapons", says Business Insider.
The two letters have led to a meeting with the UN and 123 member nations over the technologies, says The Verge, although "discussions have been delayed due to unpaid fees from member states."
Talks are now expected to commence later this year.
-
5 hilariously incriminating cartoons about the Epstein filesCartoons Artists take on an Epstein Thanksgiving, solving the puzzle, and more
-
Political cartoons for November 15Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include cowardly congressmen, a Macy's parade monster, and more
-
Massacre in the favela: Rio’s police take on the gangsIn the Spotlight The ‘defence operation’ killed 132 suspected gang members, but could spark ‘more hatred and revenge’
-
Is AI to blame for recent job cuts?Today’s Big Question Numerous companies have called out AI for being the reason for the culling
-
‘Deskilling’: a dangerous side effect of AI useThe explainer Workers are increasingly reliant on the new technology
-
AI models may be developing a ‘survival drive’Under the radar Chatbots are refusing to shut down
-
Saudi Arabia could become an AI focal pointUnder the Radar A state-backed AI project hopes to rival China and the United States
-
AI is making houses more expensiveUnder the radar Homebuying is also made trickier by AI-generated internet listings
-
‘How can I know these words originated in their heart and not some data center in northern Virginia?’instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
AI: is the bubble about to burst?In the Spotlight Stock market ever-more reliant on tech stocks whose value relies on assumptions of continued growth and easy financing
-
Your therapist, the chatbotFeature Americans are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence for mental health support. Is that sensible?
