Service Robot working at a council in South Korea exhibited no reaction after falling down a two-meter staircase, marking the first case of a “robot suicide” in the country.
Some officials, scientists, and netizens believe this is the “first robot suicide.” They speculate it threw itself down the stairs after becoming too frustrated with paperwork. Witnesses reported seeing it spinning around the staircase before jumping down, suggesting it was experiencing a mental breakdown.
“The recently deceased official” was named Robot Supervisor, produced by the American company Bear Robotics. Staff at the city hall collected the debris and sent it back to the company for analysis to determine the cause of its “death.”
Unlike typical robots, Robot Supervisor is capable of moving between floors, pressing elevator buttons, delivering documents, and promoting city policies to residents. Local media emphasized the connection between the “robot’s suicide behavior” and its immense workload. No official cause of death has been announced yet.
Service Robot working for Gumi City Council. (Photo: AFP).
However, scientists argue that robots need to possess sentience to commit suicide. This has been a topic of science fiction explored in films for over a century. Recently, both technologists and philosophers have begun to view it as a practical and serious issue.
Jonathan Birch, a philosophy professor at LSE and author of The Edge of Sentience: Risk and Precaution in Humans, Other Animals, and AI, believes that we will soon witness what is called artificial intelligence (AI) with “vague sentience.”
“With the concept of ‘vague sentience’, some people will believe that your AI friend is a being with a rich inner life and emotions,” he told the Independent. “Conversely, many still firmly believe that AI lacks emotions.”
Professor Birch has called on tech companies to acknowledge the risks and focus on research to enhance public scientific understanding.
Selected in August 2023, this robot is one of the first in the city used for these purposes. Manufactured by Bear Robotics, a service robot startup based in California, USA, the robot operates from 9 AM to 6 PM and has its own employee ID card. Unlike other robots that can only operate on one floor, the robot at Gumi City Council can press elevator buttons and navigate between floors independently.
South Korea is one of the most active countries in the world in utilizing robots. The country has the highest density of robots globally, with one industrial robot for every ten employees, according to the International Federation of Robotics. The Gumi City Council stated that they do not plan to use a second service robot in the near future. However, the incident raises many ethical questions about the widespread application of robots, particularly in roles typically managed by humans. At the same time, there are growing concerns about the workload and welfare of robots within the workforce.
