You're the Dog Now, Dog

Boston Dynamics, the company responsible for the DARPA-funded BigDog that was recently acquired by Google, has recently released footage of its newest robot, Spot. Spot differs from its predecessors in significant ways. It’s about the size of a large dog (BigDog, ironically enough, was more like a horse or cow) and is electrically-powered, rather than housing an internal combustion engine, thus making it much quieter. 

This newest video was alarming for multiple reasons, not the least of which is the fact that an autonomous robot was roaming freely, lacking even a physical or invisible fence often used to confine dogs, while traffic can be observed in the background. However, the Internet seemed most concerned with an event that occurred early in the video, when the robot was forcefully kicked to demonstrate its ability to recover its balance. Despite a joking disclaimer at the end of the video that “No robots were harmed in the making of this video,” many people felt sympathy towards Spot and expressed concern over his treatment. Most of this concern was tongue-in-cheek, but the fact that so many people mentioned this indicated that it might mark the beginning of a serious social issue. Robot rights, or at least robot welfare, might be in our future.

This left me wondering what line this robot crossed that elicited an anthropomorphic response from people. Every child plays with dolls and stages elaborate plots, often involving deaths, especially among super hero figures, yet little emotional bonds form between the two. I may be sad if my doll breaks, but that stems mostly from its sentimental value- simply treating this object as if it were alive doesn’t make me respond as if it were alive. How similar must an object appear to a human that it causes an emotional response? Numerous types of robots have been created over the past few decades, such as remotely operated robots, industrial production robots, and self-driving cars, but no one cares if I kick a drone.

Previous Boston Dynamics robots such as BigDog, driven via internal combustion, created loud buzzing noises that suggested they had more in common with leaf blowers than animals. Spot, however, though still producing an audible whirring noise, looks and acts like a dog. It can navigate autonomously and respond to sudden environmental changes, effortlessly navigating obstacles such as stairs and hills. It seems as though the critical difference between Spot and other robots is it demonstrates a decision-making ability, or artificial intelligence.

Humans sympathize with some animals, yet not others. No one objects to killing a cow (and some even tip them recreationally) or an insect, but there are laws in place to protect domestic animals such as dogs and cats from abuse. Dolphins, too, are apparently similar enough to humans to be granted the status of “non-human persons” in Chile, Coasta Rica, Hungary, and India. The legal protection of cats and dogs can be explained by the fact that aggressive acts towards these animals often precede aggressive acts towards humans. Living alongside animals, as in the case of pets, often creates emotional ties, which explains why someone might object to the killing of a cat or dog, since they can identify with it. Very few people live alongside dolphins, however, so there must be something more. Perceived intelligence, combined with a corporeal body, is apparently enough to cause people to treat the animal as though it were human.

Robots welfare may very well be a concern in the future. Just as certain types of animal abuse have been made illegal to protect humans, similar laws may eventually protect robots. It’s only a matter of time before people develop emotions towards their robots, as they have with cats and dogs. How much longer until robots and dolphins are on equal grounds?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8YjvHYbZ9w