Sex robots are upon us. They’re, well… excuse the pun, coming.
Already one company, TrueCompanion, has spent roughly a million dollars on the development of Roxxxy, a life-sized interactive sex robot. Thus far, regular sex dolls in the market have only been mere playthings, with idealized bodily proportions and always accessible orifices. These sex dolls are essentially lifeless objects, alive only in the user’s imagination, becoming inert once more after they’ve been used.
The perfectly agreeable and idealized Roxxxy at your service. (Image from SimonRoses.com)
But not Roxxxy. Imbued with artificial intelligence, Roxxxy is, as her slogan claims, “always turned on and ready to talk or play.” In this way, she transcends her role as a mere sex doll, she now has the potential to become—true to her company’s name—a True Companion. That’s very possible considering the rate at which AI technology proceeds. Just this week, a computer called Giraffe, taught itself how to play chess and became master in it in just three days. True, Siri and Cortana may be lightyears away from the wonderfully aware and shrewd OS that is Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) in the film Her (2013), but who knows what new heights of awareness those two will reach in the next few decades, or even a couple of years?
We all felt sad for Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) in that film, didn’t we? If only Samantha could be programmed into a robot skin or body of her own. If only…
Sex and its Mechanisms
It’s always like this with new and emerging technology. Either we mine it for its potential with regards to war (think of all the many scientific breakthroughs and technologies developed and appropriated by the military: nuclear energy, ultrasound, exoskeletons, to name a few). Or we exploit it for sex (think: AI and virtual reality). Not surprising because those two—violence and sex—are basic human instincts.
Technology of course can either be used properly or abused, as in the devastating case of the atomic bomb. The technology of sex bots may not be in the same league as war and national security, but it has its own set of ethical implications.
Which is why a duo of professors: Kathleen Richardson and Erik Brilling (from De Montfort University in Leicester and the University of Skövde in Sweden respectively) are calling for an outright ban on robots specifically manufactured for sex use. Their basic argument is that sex robots will only serve to dehumanize and objectify women and children, who are currently in the most vulnerable position in the world of prostitution.
The campaign’s website declares: “We propose that the development of sex robots will further reduce human empathy that can only be developed by an experience of mutual relationship.” Essentially, it’s the same argument as with violent video games and the kids who play them, who might or might not end up exhibiting aggressive behavior in the real world. Video games have been around for decades, but still no definitive study has come out to directly link them to violent behavior. Meanwhile, sex robots with built-in AI aren’t mainstream yet—too soon to say what their long-term harmful effects are. Still, the campaigners’ precaution is not an unreasonable one.
On the bright side, sex robots may be just what the world needs to combat prostitution, rape, sex slavery, and human trafficking, as well as sexually transmitted diseases. By becoming responsive, accessible, and fully satisfying substitutes and safe outlets, these sex bots just might be able to divert its human users from engaging in otherwise illegal sexual activities. Of course, this just might be a temporary fix, which at the end of the day might only encourage perversion in human users all the more.
Behaving with Robots Around
So many questions and implications surround the issue of robots developed for sex.
Is it an act of infidelity to have relations with sex robots, especially when they’ve become fully responsive and intuitive close enough to be considered a human being? Should the manufacture of sex robots be censored? Should robots enjoy the same rights as humans do, if they are to have the same self-consciousness as we do? In that vein, would it be wrong then to inflict sexual abuse on a sex bot? Because, so far, that nice little social experiment with hitchBOT last August ended rather sadly. hitchBOT’s fate may not be indicative of an entire human society unkind to robots, but it certainly offers insight as to what can happen even to the most well-intentioned droids. So how are we to behave amidst robots? Do we have anything to fear from them? And have they got something to fear from us in turn?
Theodore ponders the OS that is Samantha (Image from the blogs.wsj.com)
One would think all these campaigns and precautions and regulations are petty over-exaggerations. They’re all valid, however, given the fast pace of the robotics industry. Right now, sex robots may be a cause for concern for only a minority, but killer bots are a totally different beast. When deployed in war, these autonomous weaponized bots can ruthlessly execute a strike to kill, without human intervention at all. So you see, the same argument for sex robots’ impersonal approach applies here. The rally cry of the campaigners against both killer bots and sex bots are essentially the same: early on our governments should be setting a standard regarding the exact roles that will be played by robots in our society. Because a lot could go out of hand.
By developing the perfect robot, one breakthrough after another—be it giving robots a sense of balance, more dexterity and flexibility, an improved skin, and more cognizance—we’re steadily realizing the robotic world envisioned by various sci-fi films. From Metropolis (1927) to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) to AI (2001) to I, Robot (2004) to Automata (2014) to Ex Machina (2014). Almost all of these films involve robot creations turning against their creator, which is needed to move the plot along of course, but which is very plausible in the real world. We need more of these thought-provoking films to offer us a glimpse of what the human condition could be amidst robots, if only to prepare and guide our actions.
Yes, we’re still lightyears away from Samantha in Her or Gigolo Joe (the male prostitute bot in AI, played by Jude Law)—but make no mistake about it, we will get there.
