Experts call for rapid regulation of killer robots, say humans should decide 'who lives and who dies'

Austria on Monday (Apr 29) called for renewed global efforts to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) in weapon systems, highlighting the potential emergence of autonomous so-called "killer robots." 

During a conference in Vienna, which gathered representatives from 143 countries, and various non-governmental and international organisations, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg stressed that "We cannot let this moment pass without taking action. Now is the time to agree on international rules and norms to ensure human control."

'Humanity at crossroads'

The conference titled 'Humanity at the Crossroads: Autonomous Weapons Systems and the Challenge of Regulation,' as per AFP, focused on the ethical and legal dilemmas posed by AI weapons capable of operating without human oversight.

Also read | AI's Achilles' heel: Pentagon developing tech to avoid rogue machines, slaughterbots in battle

Giving the opening remarks at the conference, Schallenberg said, "At least let us make sure that the most profound and far-reaching decision, who lives and who dies, remains in the hands of humans and not of machines."

Despite years of discussions at the United Nations, little progress has been made in regulating these technologies. Participants at the Vienna conference expressed concern that the window to address these challenges was closing rapidly.

Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, echoed the need for swift action.

"It is so important to act and to act very fast," said Spoljaric, adding, "What we see today in the different contexts of violence are moral failures in the face of the international community."

"We do not want to see such failures accelerating by giving the responsibility for violence, for the control over violence, over to machines and algorithms," she warned during a panel discussion.

AI in battlefield

Diplomats at the conference cited examples of AI already being used on the battlefield. This includes drones in Ukraine, which can autonomously navigate to targets when cut off from operator signals, and reports of AI being used by the Israeli military to identify bombing targets in Gaza.

Also read | Explained: Israeli military's use of AI tool 'Lavender' to generate kill lists

Highlighting the potential for error in AI systems, Jaan Tallinn, a software programmer and tech investor in a keynote speech, warned, "We must be extremely cautious about relying on the accuracy of these systems, whether in the military or civilian sectors."

Cited incidents of AI misidentification in both civilian and military contexts, he said, "We have already seen AI making selection errors in ways both large and small, from misrecognising a referee's bald head as a football, to pedestrian deaths caused by self-driving cars unable to recognise jaywalking."

(With inputs from agencies)