- Such robots will be common in the future, but who will be in control?
AI Robot Pets: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer limited to just smartphones, smartwatches or drones. This technology is gradually making its place in every part of our everyday life. In this series, now robotic pets equipped with AI have also started appearing. Things which were seen in science fiction films till some time ago are now becoming reality.
A recent example of this is a robot named The Familiar, developed by iRobot co-founder Colin Engle. It is a furry pet-like robot that has been designed to interact with household members, understand them and build relationships with them over time.
Try to be a companion, not just a machine.
Domestic robots are usually made for cleaning or other tasks but The Familiar has a different purpose. Its purpose is to make people feel together and emotionally connected.
This robot, approximately the size of a dog, can move around inside the house and follow people from one room to another. Its makers claim that it is not just a working machine but a digital companion that makes its presence felt in the house.
Familiar Machines & Magic, the company that makes this robot, says that it processes most of the data locally and does not send the information to the cloud under normal circumstances. The company also claims that users’ permission will be required to connect to the Internet.
Growing concern about cyber security
Although companies are making big claims about security, experts believe that such internet-connected robots are not completely risk-free.
According to Ryan Callow, a law and informatics expert at the University of Washington, previous research has shown that network-connected home robots can be hacked remotely. Now that advanced AI technology is being added to these machines, the potential vulnerabilities may increase even further.
Experts say that if a simple robot vacuum gets hacked, the damage may be limited, but more intelligent and freely roaming robots could create new types of security challenges within the home.
Emotional attachment can also become a problem
One of the biggest concerns related to AI robots is humans forming emotional relationships with them. Researchers say that people become emotionally attached to machines more quickly than expected.
Woodrow Hartzog, professor of law and computer science at Northeastern University, believes that robots that behave excessively social and friendly have the ability to influence people mentally. If a person becomes emotionally dependent on a machine, his decisions and behavior can also be affected.
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