A quadrupedal robot armed with a machine gun built by Ghost Robotics, which has not signed the pledge. | Photo by Chris Jung/NurPhoto via Getty Images
A group of robotics companies including Boston Dynamics — makers of the well-known quadrupedal robot Spot — have pledged not to weaponize their most advanced robots. However, the pledge will likely do little to stop the wider weaponization of this technology.
In an open letter addressed to the entire robotics industries (and first reported by Axios), the companies said they “believe that adding weapons to robots that are remotely or autonomously operated … raises new risks of harm and serious ethical issues.”
“We pledge that we will not weaponize our advanced-mobility general-purpose robots or the software we develop that enables advanced robotics and…
