Is Human Bias Shaping Robot Design?

Chief digital officers all too often focus on essential tech without considering how their clients and their workforce receive that technology. A prime example is Tesla's recent stunt at the company’s annual AI Day event that featured a demo of the firm's humanoid robot prototype.

A demo that sparked more controversy for even Tesla CEO Elon Musk. “Expectations quickly went down the drain for most AI experts when the stage walls slowly opened to reveal a work-in-progress robot — dubbed ‘Bumble C’ — said to have moved awkwardly to the front and raised its arms to salute the crowd,” said designboom.com.

“Anybody who thinks Tesla is actually building a humanoid robot is living in an alternate reality,” tweeted AI researcher Filip Piękniewski. “Mars base is more likely than the bot.”

Cynthia Yeung, robot evangelist at Texas-based Plus One Robotics, tweeted: “You see, when wealthy and influential people like Elon create unrealistic expectations and garner widespread media coverage, the average consumer [is] influenced. The consequence: buyers and funders ask why the robot doesn't behave like a human, like in that demo video they saw on YouTube. Or like what that smart person on TV said.”

It's easy to poke fun at showy promotional reveals of new products. The key takeaway here: public-facing tech doesn't exist in a vacuum. Designers and promoters must anticipate reactions to technology — especially when it's presented in a format that evokes decades of science fiction movies.

Two types of robots

There are two basic types of robots: the ones humans have anthropomorphized (built to resemble humans) and the more abstract industrial robots. The former type feature prominently in science fiction as avatars or proxies for human beings that mimic human forms and human emotions. The latter are often thought of as big yellow welding robots on Japanese automobile assembly lines — although their forms and functions transcend this stereotype.

Recent robotic designs see form follow function, as tractor treads evolve to individual-leg locomotion better suited to real-world terrain. Six-legged designs may be more useful, but the devices resemble giant insects a bit too closely. Remember that the patrons of such machines are humans, and we tend to be wary of such designs.

Recent robotic designs see form follow function

Many robot exteriors now skew toward quadruped models that look more like dogs than insects. The archetypal dog bot is Sony's AIBO that debuted in 1999, complete with big puppy eyes and a stubby metal tail.

But the big dog in canine-adjacent robot manufacture is Boston Dynamics, a spin-off of the U.S.’s Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The firm's current lineup includes models named: BigDog, Cheetah, LittleDog, Handle, Stretch, and Pick.

In 2018, the company's SpotMini robot went viral with a video of the industrial-yellow robot opening a door. A young man armed with an ice hockey stick attempts to prevent the machine from doing so, but despite this (and its rear-end piece falling off when the hapless human yanks a leash-like restraint), the robot prevails.

The video sparked much comment, as the robot displays canine-reminiscent stubbornness in its task but also unfurls a very un-doglike prehensile neck with an attached claw. “Many reactions on both social media and among media outlets combine awe with dark humor characterized by discomfort or anxiety,” said CNBC. “More than a few are alluding to science fiction stories, particularly the 'Metalhead' episode of the BBC show Black Mirror, a show composed of vignettes that depict haunting worlds shaped by familiar technologies.”

SpotMini was renamed “Spot” and no longer has any sort of neck.

Terminator Syndrome

In October 2022, the engineering and robotics design company, in conjunction with several other robot manufacturers, published “An Open Letter to the Robotics Industry and our Communities” declaring that “General Purpose Robots Should Not Be Weaponized.”

Robot manufacturers have learned that their products' appearance stirs strong emotions among us humans. And Boston Dynamics robots, while still engaging in publicity stunts (like synchronized cheerleading in support of Japanese baseball team Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks), are subject to Terminator Syndrome.

Designers and promoters must anticipate reactions to technology

As a YouTube consumer put it in a comment on the door-opening video: “It can’t be bargained with, it can’t be reasoned with, it doesn’t feel pity or remorse or fear, and it absolutely will not stop, ever, until it’s gone through that door.” The comment is a riff on a monologue from robot-doomsday movie The Terminator (1984) that features an anthropomorphized robot intent on homicide.

A line of dialogue from this seminal film outlines a general fear many harbor about computer networks: “Defense network computers. New...powerful...hooked into everything, trusted to run it all. They say it got smart, a new order of intelligence. Then it saw all people as a threat, not just the ones on the other side. Decided our fate in a microsecond: extermination.” Authority figures in the film (police officers and psychiatrists) are summarily executed. This pervasive view of robots-as-relentless-killers fuels jokes as well as paranoia.

Flying robots

Unmanned flying weapons debuted during the waning days of World War 2 with V-1 and V-2 rockets. But the advent of relatively cheap drones has changed the playing field. Nowadays drones outfitted with cameras are used for observation and recording, while others are equipped with suitable weaponry.

Since the invasion of “Ukraine at the end of February, drones of all shapes and sizes have been used by both sides in the conflict,” says Wired Magazine. “Where drone warfare once consisted almost entirely of an American Predator UAV flying alone over the deserts of the Middle East, there is now a growing and diverse group of drones appearing in more and more roles on the battlefield and beyond.”

While the ongoing conflict in Ukraine features new uses for autonomous weapons, it's worth noting that these are typically piloted remotely by actual humans. Despite the dramatic uptick in the use of drones, evil SkyNet has yet to manifest.

Stefan Hammond is a contributing editor to CDOTrends. Best practices, the IoT, payment gateways, robotics, and the ongoing battle against cyberpirates pique his interest. You can reach him at [email protected].

Image credit: iStockphoto/PhonlamaiPhoto