By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report Source: KUKA, 1983 Do industrial robots really have a positive impact on employment? Of course they do and there are over 50 years of data proving that to be the case.  There are at least 350,000 people directly employed by and in the industrial robotics industry. However, industrial…

The Economist in recent weeks has printed a series of articles about robots but this video about robo-ethics is particularly clear and worth a few minutes of your time. Or read the book by George Bekey and Patrick Lim, “Robot Ethics: The Ethical and Social Implications of Robotics (Intelligent Robotics and Autonomous Agents series)” from…

Steve Ballmer, CEO, Microsoft and Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman, Mercedes Benz Much of what I saw at CES 2012 was about products being upgraded to “smart” under the premise that smart connectivity enables consumer convenience. It was definitely on the minds of most of those attending. That’s why the CES keynote speeches were so well attended:…

6-minute video addresses preconceptions and fears and shows Honda’s efforts to make their Asimo robot appealing rather than creepy. Psychological phenomena: if a robot behaves and moves in ways that enhance trust and engagement, you think it’s alive. Premise detailed in Erik Sofke’s Popular Mechanics article “Can Robots be Trusted?“ In same article, Sofke also…

Watch Ray Kurzweil’s presentation about the impact of accelerating technological progress at the Army’s Science Conference Listen to a fascinating two-part podcast about roboethics. Read a Navy-funded report about the need for ethics in robotics. Hear P.W. Singer’s NPR interview about his “Wired for War” book and his resulting concerns.