Robotics Autonomics And The Law

Autonomous Systems are a hot topic. Their development is being driven by advances in networking, sensor technology and machine learning. Countries like the USA, Korea, Japan, China and Germany, are taking the lead. Technology develops internationally but the law is shaped and made at a national level. Tension between the two disciplines are almost inevitable, especially since technology is advancing at such a fast pace. The research papers collected in this volume focus on fundamental questions of how the law should deal not only with new technologies in general, but also with some special issues, such as autonomous vehicles and drones. These texts were generated by the AUTONOMICS for Industry 4.0 technology program of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology.

Like the Internet before it, robotics is a socially and economically transformative technology. Robot Law explores how the increasing sophistication of robots and their widespread deployment into hospitals, public spaces, and battlefields requires rethinking of a wide variety of philosophical and public policy issues, including how this technology interacts with existing legal regimes, and thus may inspire changes in policy and in law. This volume collects the efforts of a diverse group of scholars who each, in their own way, has worked to overcome barriers in order to facilitate necessary and timely discussions of a technology in its infancy. Identifying controversial legal, ethical, and philosophical problems, the authors reveal how issues surrounding robotics and regulation are more complicated than engineers could have anticipated, and just how much definitional and applied work remains to be done. This groundbreaking examination of a brand-new reality will be of interest and of use to a variety of groups as the authors include engineers, ethicists, lawyers, roboticists, philosophers, and serving military.

The question of whether new rules or regulations are required to govern, restrict, or even prohibit the use of autonomous weapon systems has been the subject of debate for the better part of a decade. Despite the claims of advocacy groups, the way ahead remains unclear since the international community has yet to agree on a specific definition of Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems and the great powers have largely refused to support an effective ban. In this vacuum, the public has been presented with a heavily one-sided view of Killer Robots. This volume presents a more nuanced approach to autonomous weapon systems that recognizes the need to progress beyond a discourse framed by the Terminator and HAL 9000. Re-shaping the discussion around this emerging military innovation requires a new line of thought and a willingness to challenge the orthodoxy. Lethal Autonomous Weapons focuses on exploring the moral and legal issues associated with the design, development and deployment of lethal autonomous weapons. In this volume, we bring together some of the most prominent academics and academic-practitioners in the lethal autonomous weapons space and seek to return some balance to the debate. As part of this effort, we recognize that society needs to invest in hard conversations that tackle the ethics, morality, and law of these new digital technologies and understand the human role in their creation and operation.

What legal status should be granted to artificial agents?

In Artificial Intelligence: Robot Law, Policy and Ethics, Dr. Nathalie Rébé discusses the legal and contemporary issues in relation to creating conscious robots. This book provides an in-depth analysis of the existing regulatory tools, as well as a new comprehensive framework for regulating Strong AI.

Military robots and other, potentially autonomous robotic systems such as unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAVs) and unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) could soon be introduced to the battlefield. Look further into the future and we may see autonomous micro- and nanorobots armed and deployed in swarms of thousands or even millions. This growing automation of warfare may come to represent a major discontinuity in the history of warfare: humans will first be removed from the battlefield and may one day even be largely excluded from the decision cycle in future high-tech and high-speed robotic warfare. Although the current technological issues will no doubt be overcome, the greatest obstacles to automated weapons on the battlefield are likely to be legal and ethical concerns. Armin Krishnan explores the technological, legal and ethical issues connected to combat robotics, examining both the opportunities and limitations of autonomous weapons. He also proposes solutions to the future regulation of military robotics through international law.

This book analyses the legal, ethical and social aspects of using deep-learning AI robotic products. The collective effort of distinguished international researchers has been incorporated into one book suitable for the broader audience interested in the emerging scientific field of roboethics. The book has been edited by Prof. George Dekoulis, Aerospace Engineering Institute, Cyprus, expert on state-of-the-art implementations of robotic systems for unmanned spacecraft navigation and other aerospace applications. We hope this book will increase the sensitivity of all the community members involved with roboethics. The significance of incorporating all aspects of roboethics right at the beginning of the creation of a new deep-learning AI robot is emphasised and analysed throughout the book. AI robotic systems offer an unprecedented set of virtues to the society. However, the principles of roboethical design and operation of deep-learning AI robots must be strictly legislated, the manufacturers should apply the laws and the knowledge development of the AI robots should be closely monitored after sales. This will minimise the drawbacks of implementing such intelligent technological solutions. These devices are a representation of ourselves and form communities like us. Learning from them is also a way to improve ourselves.

Artificial intelligence and related technologies are changing both the law and the legal profession. In particular, technological advances in fields ranging from machine learning to more advanced robots, including sensors, virtual realities, algorithms, bots, drones, self-driving cars, and more sophisticated “human-like” robots are creating new and previously unimagined challenges for regulators. These advances also give rise to new opportunities for legal professionals to make efficiency gains in the delivery of legal services. With the exponential growth of such technologies, radical disruption seems likely to accelerate in the near future. This collection brings together a series of contributions by leading scholars in the newly emerging field of artificial intelligence, robotics, and the law. The aim of the book is to enrich legal debates on the social meaning and impact of this type of technology. The distinctive feature of the contributions presented in this edition is that they address the impact of these technological developments in a number of different fields of law and from the perspective of diverse jurisdictions. Moreover, the authors utilize insights from multiple related disciplines, in particular social theory and philosophy, in order to better understand and address the legal challenges created by AI. Therefore, the book will contribute to interdisciplinary debates on disruptive new AI technologies and the law.