The Future of Robotics

     The rising technological advancements of robotic military use and artificial intelligence has peaked interest in popular hollywood movies, but what does the future of robotics really hold for the world? Robots are currently used in all aspects of the military, including ground vehicles, air drones, undersea attack drones, and much more remote operated technology. The majority of these robotics uses are for reconnaissance and smaller missioned bombings. 

    Every new advancement to the world has positives and negatives, but it seems the positives are heavily outweighing when it comes to the use of drones in military missions. This includes a decrease of casualties amongst soldiers because of the decline in on-foot missions. These robots are ultimately less expensive to make than it is to train and deploy soldiers as well as the positive of the robot not actually having a family back home waiting for them. These robots have the capability to loiter, reduce size of weapons, create a smaller cross-section, and have the ability to fly around for 20+ hours--whereas manned aircrafts require periods of rest. 

    Legal implications of robots have been applied in efforts to control correct and responsible operation. These include understanding what directing a robot to kill automatically implies, and whether they should continue to only be operated through human instruction. The law of robotics states; don't hurt humans, do what you're told, and don't hurt yourself. The intention is to prevent a "robot rebellion", or letting the advancements of technology and AI get out of human control. Combining autonomy with the power to kill becomes very dangerous and requires strict regulations on how to move forward with this military method. 

    Army developers continue to explain these robotics are working just as well if not better than expected in combat because of its ability to integrate a wide range of weapons and advance computer systems capable of processing information incredibly fast. The military is quickly becoming a multi-domain, working with manned-unmanned artificial intelligence robotics that are able to use algorithms to connect unique human cognition in efforts to more quickly receive and process data. 

    Companies are quickly developing more impressive technology to contribute to military robotics. One in particular known as REDOWL (Robotic Enhanced Detection Outpost with Lasers) has the ability to use lasers and sound detection to shoot down snipers or enemy targets with an instant detection system. In previous tests, this robot has proved 94% accurate and still undergoing improvements today. The future of robotics and AI is here and only increasing, but how far humans will let it go is still up for debate.