When we build robots and artificial intelligence, is there anywhere we shouldn’t go?

Stephen Hawking once claimed that AI could be the greatest threat to humanity. The tech world’s most prominent visionaries have voiced concerns around the proliferation of robots in all areas of our lives, yet we continue to hurtle towards a brave new mechanical world. Is it possible that in the future we could be looking at a self-aware artificial intelligence?

If robots become just as sentient as humans, will they be afforded the same rights? Should there be a set of immutable ethical laws around robots and AI before it’s too late and if so, whose job would it be to determine and enforce them?

Join UNSW robots and AI expert Professor Toby Walsh, researcher and digital strategist Kate Devlin, philosopher Matthew Beard and legal ethicist Justine Rogers to tackle these moral dilemmas and determine how these rapidly emerging technologies will impact our tomorrow.

Presented by UNSW Centre for Ideas as a part of RoboCup 2019 Sydney, an international robot soccer competition and robotics conference.

This event was part of the UNSW Grand Challenge: Living with 21st Century Technology.

When we build robots and artificial intelligence, is there anywhere we shouldn’t go? Stephen Hawking once claimed that AI could be the greatest threat to humanity. The tech world’s most prominent visionaries have voiced concerns around the proliferation of robots in all areas of our lives, yet we continue to hurtle towards a brave new mechanical world. Is it possible that in the future we could be looking at a self-aware artificial intelligence? If robots become just as sentient as humans, will they be afforded the same rights? Should there be a set of immutable ethical laws around robots and AI before it’s too late and if so, whose job would it be to determine and enforce them? Join UNSW robots and AI expert Professor Toby Walsh, researcher and digital strategist Kate Devlin, philosopher Matthew Beard and legal ethicist Justine Rogers to tackle these moral dilemmas and determine how these rapidly emerging technologies will impact our tomorrow. Presented by UNSW Centre for Ideas as a part of RoboCup 2019 Sydney, an international robot soccer competition and robotics conference. This event was part of the UNSW Grand Challenge: Living with 21st Century Technology.

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Ideas is a thought-provoking program of events and digital content from the globe's leading thinkers, authors and artists.

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Ideas is a thought-provoking program of events and digital content from the globe's leading thinkers, authors and artists.

Advertisement