Robots

U.N. Moves Towards Possible Ban on Autonomous Weapons

89 nations signatory to the United Nations Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) have voted to convene groups of governmental experts twice in 2017 to discuss the implications of autonomous weapons, which would choose targets without human oversight. According to Human Rights Watch, the agreement could move the international body towards a broad ban on weapons directed by artificial intelligence.

Autonomous weapons systems—or, more colloquially, killer robots—have been the subject of intense criticism from tech leaders and global thinkers including Elon Musk, Stephen Hawking, and Steve Wozniak. In part, they argue that warfare conducted by robot would risk civilian casualties with relatively little oversight.