Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called SpotMini

Re:Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called Sp... by trophycase on Tuesday November 14, 2017 @02:06AM (#15693287)

Because people know that ultimately this will be used for military/policing applications and aren't excited for an inhuman future where AI and robots dispense "justice" and keep "peace"

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Re:Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called Sp... by mtaksrud on Tuesday November 14, 2017 @02:17AM (#15693334)

Seriously? Isn’t that a very dystopian view of the future?

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Re:Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called Sp... by stuaxo on Tuesday November 14, 2017 @03:58AM (#15693666)

Yes, but makes sense - Boston Dynamics have funding from the US military and military tech seems to end up in the hands of police forces.

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Re:Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called Sp... by MarkMc on Tuesday November 14, 2017 @07:45AM (#15694526)

Dystopian? Yes. Unlikely? No.

Right now you have US military personnel sitting at a desk in Ohio launching missiles from a drone in Afghanistan to kill bad guys. Why wouldn't they also use killer robots when they become available?

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Re:Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called Sp... by golergka on Tuesday November 14, 2017 @05:01AM (#15693866)

Why not? There are two options here - either AI will be better at those things than humans, or worse. Why does everyone assume only one of those options is possible?

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Re:Boston Dynamics has a new creepy dog-like robot called Sp... by joncrocks on Tuesday November 14, 2017 @05:24AM (#15693937)

Robots would arguably be better an enforcing law and order.

The troubles people fear come from where the people creating and implementing law become increasingly disconnected from the enforcement, and removing people from enforcement removes a feedback from 'the ground'. A person can refuse to enforce what it perceives to be an unjust law. A union can band together and refuse to do certain things.

That can happen with robots as well, but the requirements for cooperation are lower. Fewer bad actors are required to achieve a super-bad goal. Imagine the entire police force controlled by one person. The entire army. Would that be good?

If you answer is no, or "maybe, it depends" then you also appreciate the unease that people feel about increased concentration of power that could come from automation.

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