In December 2017, The Economist expressed concerns about the practicality of Slaughterbots concerning the U.S. MAST and DCIST microdrone initiatives.
About the AI Slaughterbots (Killer Robots)
This concept originates from Stuart Russell, a professor of artificial intelligence (AI) at the University of California, Berkeley. It received funding from the Future of Life Institute (FLI), an organization comprised of worried scientists and technologists, including notable figures like Elon Musk, Stephen Hawking, and Martin Rees, Britain’s Astronomer Royal. The scenario unfolds in a near-future world where small drones equipped with facial recognition technology and explosive devices can be programmed to target and eliminate specific individuals or groups, such as those in a certain uniform.
Near-Future Scenario of AI Slaughterbots (Killer Robots)
Your kids probably have one of these right? Not quite.
Hell of a pilot? No. That skill is all AI. It’s flying itself.
Capabilities of AI Slaughterbots (Killer Robots)
The AI Slaughterbots (Killer Robots) processor can react a hundred times faster than a human. The stochastic motion is an anti-sniper feature. Just like any mobile device these days, it has cameras and sensors, and just like your phones and social media apps, AI Slaughterbots (Killer Robots) does facial recognition.
Inside here is three grams of shaped explosive. This is how it works. Did you see that? That little bang is enough to penetrate the skull and destroy the contents. Now trust me, these were all bad guys. Now that is an airstrike of surgical precision. It’s one of a range of products.
Trained as a team, they can penetrate buildings, cars, trains, evade people, bullets, pretty much any countermeasure. They cannot be stopped. Now, I said this was big. Why? Because we are thinking big. Watch. A $25 million order now buys this. Enough to kill half a city. The bad half. Nuclear is obsolete.
Take out your entire enemy, virtually risk-free. Just characterize him, release the swarm, and rest easy.
Stuart Russell – Technologies That we Already Have
This short film is more than just speculation. It shows the results of integrating and miniaturizing technologies that we already have. I’m Stuart Russell, a professor of computer science at Berkeley. I’ve worked in AI for more than 35 years. It’s potential to benefit humanity is enormous, even in defense. Allowing machines to choose to kill humans will be devastating to our security and freedom. Thousands of my fellow researchers agree. We have an opportunity to prevent the future you just saw, but the window to act is closing fast.
