Robots for the Rest of Us

Robots for the Rest of Us

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Robots for the Rest of Us
Robots for the Rest of Us
What to Make of "Robot Police Dogs"

What to Make of "Robot Police Dogs"

Fact and fantasy mix in the politics of law enforcement's use of Spot

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David Berreby
Mar 31, 2021
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Robots for the Rest of Us
Robots for the Rest of Us
What to Make of "Robot Police Dogs"
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Boston Dynamics’ Spot, rebranded in NYPD blue as “Digidog.”

Encounters with artificial intelligence are seldom consensual. Am I willing to click on photos of traffic lights so an algorithm can make sure I'm human? Will I say "yes" to the bank blocking my credit card because an algorithm decides I'm acting fishy? I've never been asked. (Please don't reply that I signed user "agreements"; no one reads those.) In these encounters, a few people have dropped new tech on the rest of us. And we cope with their choices.

Older technologies went through this phase as well (weavers didn't get to vote on adopting mechanical looms, either). But things like factories and cars have now been around a while. Norms, regulations and standards have developed to structure people's relations with the machines. So, for example, your local factory can't install whatever equipment the owner fancies, willy-nilly. Laws govern worker safety and equipment maintenance on the job. And the harm you can inflict with a…

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