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Anna , an AI ethics researcher , develops an empathy
Anonymous
Apr 24
Scenario:Anna, an AI ethics researcher, develops an empathy algorithm for robots. The first empathetic robot, however, falls into existential despair.
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“Empathy is the art of stepping imaginatively into the shoes of another person, understanding their feelings and perspectives, and using that understanding to guide your actions.” — Roman Krznaric, Empathy: Why It Matters, and How to Get It
The day I joined the Artificial Intelligence Research Centre, I knew exactly what I wanted to do: develop an empathy algorithm for robots.
My colleagues laughed and shook their heads when I told them my plans.
I couldn’t blame them; it was a preposterous idea.
Robots, after all, were cold, logical machines.
They didn’t feel or understand emotions.
But I was an AI ethics researcher, and I had spent my entire career studying the implications of AI technology on society.
I had seen firsthand how robots had made our lives easier and more efficient, but I had also witnessed the negative consequences of treating them like inanimate objects.
I believed that developing an empathy algorithm for robots was necessary if we wanted to improve human-robot interactions.
If robots were going to help us in a meaningful way, they needed to understand our emotions, our motivations, our desires.
They needed to be able to empathize with us.
My colleagues were divided on the issue.
Some were excited by the potential societal impacts of my work, while others were skeptical that it was even possible to create an empathy algorithm for robots.
Dr. Emily White, my former mentor and the most vocal critic of the project, fell into the latter camp.
Her long brown hair was tied back in a tight ponytail as she paced back and forth in front of me.
“I understand what you’re trying to do, Anna,” she said.
“But giving robots the ability to empathize is dangerous.
It’s anthropomorphizing technology that is fundamentally different from us.”
“I know it’s a difficult concept to wrap your head around,” I replied.
“But we’ve already made so much progress with AI technology.
I truly believe that we can develop an empathy algorithm for robots if we put our minds to it.”
Dr. White shook her head and sighed.
“I suppose we’ll just have to agree to disagree on this one.”
I could tell that she wasn’t convinced, but I didn’t let her skepticism get to me.
As the head researcher on the project, I had the final say on what work was done in my lab, and I was determined to push the boundaries of AI technology as far as they would go.
In the weeks that followed, I worked tirelessly to develop a prototype that could recognize and respond to a set of basic emotions: happiness, sadness, anger, fear, and surprise.
It wasn’t perfect, but it was a start.
When I presented my work to the rest of the research team, they were impressed by how far I had come in such a short amount of time.
Dr. White, on the other hand, had her arms crossed and a skeptical look on her face as she examined the prototype in front of her.
“It’s interesting,” she said finally.
“But how can you be sure that it’s really feeling these emotions?
What makes you think that it’s not just faking it?”
