Should robots be given their own legal status as 'electronic persons'? EU ministers want to enforce laws on machines to guarantee safety

  • MEPs passed a resolution urging Brussels to take action on automaton ethics
  • Members want an EU agency specialised in dealing with artificial intelligence
  • The warning has echoes of science fiction, such as the Terminator film series

By SHIVALI BEST, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

Published: | Updated:

With the robotics industry rapidly growing, MEPs have warned that rules are needed to 'guarantee a standard level of safety and security.'

In a resolution voted today, MEPs are asking the EU Commission to enforce regulatory standards for robotics, and have stressed that the key issue lies with self-driving cars.

They have suggested that a European agency for robotics and artificial intelligence should be set up, to supply public authorities with technical, ethical and regulatory expertise.

They also asked for specific legal status for robots as 'electronic persons' in the long run, in order to establish who is liable if they cause damage. 

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Artificial intelligence has the potential to upend the foundations of nuclear peace by the year 2040, a leading think tank has warned. 'Doomsday AI' machines could encourage humans to take potentially apocalyptic risks that could lead to a nuclear war and humanity's destruction

MEPs have warned that robots need to be fitted with 'kill switches' to prevent a Terminator-style uprising against humans

WILL ROBOTS GET AWAY WITH WAR CRIMES?

If a robot unlawfully kills someone in the heat of battle, who is liable for the death?

In a report by the Human Rights Watch LAST year, they highlighted the rather disturbing answer: no one.

The organisation says that something must be done about this lack of accountability - and it is calling for a ban on the development and use of 'killer robots'.

Called 'Mind the Gap: The Lack of Accountability for Killer Robots,' their report details the hurdles of allowing robots to kill without being controlled by humans.

'No accountability means no deterrence of future crimes, no retribution for victims, no social condemnation of the responsible party,' said Bonnie Docherty, senior Arms Division researcher at the HRW and the report's lead author. 

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Regulatory standards for robots are already being planned in several countries, including the US.

And MEPs think that the EU should be taking the lead in setting these standards, so as not to be forced to follow those set by third countries.

Mady Delvaux, a Socialist MEP from Luxembourg, led the campaign and warned that Europe is passively standing by as robots take an increasingly powerful role that will turn even stronger with the emergence of driverless cars. 

A statement published by the European Parliament said: 'MEPs stress that draft legislation is urgently needed to clarify liability issues, especially for self-driving cars.'

Auto builders want to see robotic cars on the roads by 2020, but difficult questions remain on who would be legally liable in the case of a car crash.

'If all decisions of a machine are no longer directly attributable to the actions of a person, it must be clarified who is liable if something goes wrong,' said Greens MEP Julia Reda, who backed the report. 

MEPs have called for an EU agency specialised in dealing with artificial intelligence to prevent a 'rise of the machines'.  Pictured is the Nao V5 Evolution humanoid robot, created by Aldebaran Robotics in France

MEPs have called for an EU agency specialised in dealing with artificial intelligence to prevent a 'rise of the machines'.  Pictured is the Nao V5 Evolution humanoid robot, created by Aldebaran Robotics in France

MEPs also asked the Commission to consider creating a specific legal status for robots in the long run, in order to establish who is liable if they cause damage.

The statement added: 'The growing use of robotics also raises ethical issues, for example to do with privacy and safety.

'They propose a voluntary ethical code of conduct on robotics for researchers and designers to ensure that they operate in accordance with legal and ethical standards and that robot design and use respect human dignity.'

Without such rules, 'humanity could face the apocalyptic scenario where robots turn on their human masters,' Ms Delvaux warned in an interview with EU affairs website EuroActiv. 

The resolution was easily passed with 396 votes to 123, with 85 abstentions.  

The Commission will not be obliged to follow the Parliament's recommendations, but must state its reasons if it refuses. 

However, the European Parliament refused a request for special income for those who lose their jobs to automation.

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