ASIMO is Honda’s humanoid robot that has been in development for about 7 years now (although previous prototypes started in 1986). I’m sure most of you have seen it, but I just had to write a post about this little guy (or girl, it hasn’t been given a gender yet). I’ve been watching its development over the past few years and the thing never ceases to amaze me. I remember when ASIMO was just starting to walk. Now (s)he can run and dance.
It looks as though we will be encountering ASIMOs or other humanoids in our day-to-day life in the near future. Part of me is excited for this because these things are just so cool, but another part of me thinks about the ethical impacts. What happens when humanoids enter the workforce and humans are given the boot? Will we need to give humanoids “humanoid rights” as they start to think for themselves? It may seem crazy right now, but these are serious questions we’ll have to face in the near future. This reminds me of the movie “I, Robot,” which become more and more realistic as the years go by. For now, enjoy some videos of this amazing piece of technology…
Keep reading for videos.
I'm an open-minded person who loves to learn, travel, be active, and enjoy life. For a full profile, click
2 Comments
“Part of me is excited for this because these things are just so cool, but another part of me thinks about the ethical impacts. What happens when humanoids enter the workforce and humans are given the boot?”
I think this has already happened. Take all manufacturers that create any type of vehicle/aircraft or anything. This whole process is done using robotics. Hell, we even have a program here called mechatronics that specialized in the engineering of robotics.
It’s always gonna come down to cost and if a robot costs less than a work force, not to mention more precise and not restricted to human weakness (breaks, slacker etc), then that’s what will be used.
In any case, there will always be a demand for real humans in the work force, and I do believe if this ever became more widescale and robots ended up running everything, then there would be an even greater need to manage them. Way past our deaths anyways.
definitely agree with you. I think we’re going to hit a new wave soon. Whereas over the past years robots have been used in manufacturing etc, I think they will soon play a huge role in the service industry. No more people at the fast food counter or receptionist desk, only robots.