The UN is holding its first ever convention on killer robots – or lethal autonomous weapons systems.<br /><br />Although fully self-determining attack machines have yet to be manufactured, many believe technology is moving so fast that they are just around the corner.<br /><br />Some want a total ban, while others are calling for a moratorium until the systems are able to significantly reduce civilian casualties. <br /><br />The 1977 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Jody Williams, explained how they would work: “If robotics were allowed to fully develop and they were autonomous – killer robots as I like to call them – they would be able to be programmed, set free and make the decisions about when, where, who and how to attack.”<br /><br />The concept of machines making decisions on life and death makes many feel uneasy. <br /><br />Noel Sharkey, Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Sheffield and the co-founder of the Campaign Against Killer Robots, said: “There’s nothing in artificial intelligence or robotics that could discriminate between a combatant and a civilian. It would be impossible to tell the difference between a little girl pointing an ice cream at a robot or someone pointing a rifle.”<br /><br />A killer robot is defined as a fully autonomous weapon that can detect, select and attack targets without any human intervention.<br /><br />The whole issue of killer robots has huge implications for current international human rights law.
