The robot invasion is finally here.
Customer support chatbots are becoming increasingly helpful, an omnipotent being named Siri has taken up residence in our back pockets and self-driving cars are fast becoming a reality. The latest milestone in the android uprising comes in the form of Sophia, a robot who was recently granted citizenship in Saudi Arabia.
Introducing Sophia
Toward the end of October, Riyadh played host to the Future Investment Initiative, a global event that saw industry leaders descend upon the Saudi capital to explore the future of investment. Naturally, technology was a major talking point, which culminated in a robot known only as Sophia, a creation of Hanson Robotics, being granted citizenship to Saudi Arabia.
Throughout the conversation, Sophia made reasonably realistic gestures and facial expressions and managed to convey a sense of surprise when the host announced her citizenship.
"I am very honoured and proud for this unique distinction," she said. "This is historical to be the first robot in the world to be recognized with a citizenship."
How intelligent is artificial intelligence?
AI is undeniably getting more advanced, but it still has a long way to go before it can think like a human. While today’s AI is incredibly adept at very specific tasks (say, analysing data or transcribing lengthy documents), there’s no understanding involved. It simply performs its function as designed.
According to MIT PhD student Andrew Spielberg, Sophia is impressive not because she can speak, move, or make facial expressions, but because she can do all three. These characteristics combined create a much more believable impression of a human than any one of them individually.
“I think Sophia’s biggest contribution is probably having many different human-like components working together,” commented Spielberg, as quoted by Quartz. “In theory, legs, a face, and the ability to answer questions can be more convincing than any aspect in isolation.”
Just days after Sophia’s recognition as a Saudi citizen, a few media outlets reported that locals had taken offence to the robot and had beheaded her in a public square in Riyadh. We’re happy to report that these stories are not true and Sophia is ‘alive’ and well.
It seems like robots aren’t quite ready to take over the world as we know it. While Sophia’s citizenship might be little more than a clever marketing stunt, it does raise some interesting questions about robot identity and rights - things we’ll probably need to consider as AI continues to march toward human-like sentience.
Robots are getting smarter, but they’re not going to be replacing your personal trainer anytime soon.
Become a WorldTrainer member and we’ll help you get - and stay - in the best shape of your life.
