Technology Leaders’ Plea to UN: Stop Killer Robots

Sydney, AU – Technology leaders from different parts of the world called the attention of the United Nations (UN) to put “killer robot” proliferation to a halt, according to a report from the Xinhua agency.

Scientists and technology leaders gathered at the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI) on Monday in Melbourne, Australia, and plead for Artificial Intelligence (AI) weaponry upgrade to stop through an open letter addressed to the UN. They believe that once the opportunity is opened, “it will be hard to close.” The event was first held in Washington D.C. in 1969.

The technological conference was attended by world leaders in technology, such as James Chow (UBTECH), Elon Musk (TESLA), and AI expert Toby Walsh. They reiterated that UN must have full control to outlaw technological advances used in the battlefield like chemical and biological weapons – and now killer robots.

The open letter was signed by top leaders in the AI industry. It was organized by Walsh, who is also an AI professor at the University of New South Wales. He expressed his concerns in an interview stating that the world seems to be in an “arms race,” with the US, the UK, and Russia leading the rally.

The statement, released during the IJCAI, requests for UN to ban uncontrolled weaponry development. According to Walsh, the UN has been showing signs of positive action regarding the matter, but they are asking for a stronger enforcement of the law.

Walsh added that autonomous technology has a dual-purpose: to provide an improvement in the quality of life and at the same time to endanger many lives. The technology used for autonomous cars can be the same AI used to develop destructive arms.

Technological development can never be stopped, but technology leaders aim for UN to control the use of AI legally to avoid it from being used to bring harm and danger to the world.