Description
Background The prospect of robotic warfare raises questions that go to the heart of our understanding of human life and democratic society. Should ‘killer robots’ be banned? Will the developments that are emerging in the fourth industrial revolution - the age of robotics - increase wartime violence and the loss of civilian lives? Or does autonomous technology provide the possibility of making war more ethical by saving non-combatant lives? Is it possible that autonomous weapons, by eliminating the human emotions that often overwhelm soldiers on the battlefield, can reduce the potential for war crimes in the future? This seminar brings together leading scholars from various fields to address the implications of the robotics revolution for war and democracy. Speakers will consider legal, moral and security arguments for prohibiting the development, production and use of autonomous weapons. They will discuss the ongoing “Campaign to Stop Killer Robots,” its efforts to mobilize support at the UN and the political and legal frameworks needed to secure peace in the future. Speakers will also address philosophical perspectives on ‘killer robots’: the implications of human vulnerability, embodiment and emotions for these technological developments. Moreover, they will highlight the issues of democratic accountability for the use of armed force. How can we maintain democratic accountability for initiating armed conflict and engaging particular targets in this context? How can we ensure a wide-ranging democratic debate about if, when and how such systems can be utilised? Through this seminar, we gain insight into how the development of lethal autonomous weapons promises to affect the nature of armed conflict as we know it. Speakers Noel Sharkey, Emeritus Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, University of Sheffield Denise Garcia, Associate Professor of Political Science, Northeastern University, Boston Mark Coeckelbergh, Professor of Philosophy, University of Vienna John Williams, Professor of International Relations, Durham University Nicolas Marsh, Research Fellow, Peace Research Institute Oslo Hin-Yan Liu, Associate Professor, Centre for International Law, Conflict and Crisis, University of Copenhagen Johannes Lang, Researcher, DIIS Robin May Schott, Senior Researcher, DIIS Jacob Svendsen, Defence Editor, Politiken| Period | 18 Nov 2016 |
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| Event title | Killer robots: the implications of lethal autonomous weapon systems |
| Event type | Seminar/Workshop |
| Location | Kopenhagen, DenmarkShow on map |