Please ignore the robots – The Verge

Welcome to First Click, a daily essay written by The Verge staff in which we opine on lives lived in the near future.

Its just a ruin in a field now, but in 15th-century England, Boxley Abbey was a hotspot for the faithful. Pilgrims would travel from across the land to see a statue of Christ on the cross that was housed in the monastery and known as the Rood of Grace. On holy days, the Christ would come alive, with a contemporary account describing how the figure hypnotized crowds with its ability to:

shake and stirre the hands and feete, to nod the head, to rolle the eies, to wag the chaps, to bende the browes [] shewing a most milde, amiable, and smyling cheere and countenance. 1

During Henry VIIIs Dissolution of the Monasteries, when the riches of the Church were being confiscated in the name of religious conformity, the Rood was removed and its secrets laid bare. Inspectors discovered that protruding from Christs back was a mess of wire [and] old rotten sticks, which the monks had used to operate it from afar. The statue was taken to London and, during a sermon outside St Pauls Cathedral, broken into pieces by an angry crowd, to put an end its great idolatrie once and for all.

Stories like this are strange and familiar. They show that robots have been shocking society for far longer than we usually think. To us they seem a modern phenomenon, but for centuries, the rich and powerful have been building automata to amuse themselves and awe the masses. Sometimes, though, we forget about the strings that are being pulled.

Look at the news from last month that the police force of Dubai has hired its first robotic cop. The bot in question is about the size and shape of a human, but with wheels for legs, cameras for eyes, and a tablet embedded in the middle of its chest. During press events, the robot was pictured shaking hands and saluting dutifully. One officer commented: These kinds of robots can work 24/7. They won't ask you for leave, sick leave or maternity leave. It can work around the clock.

Its all rubbish of course. Dubais robot an off-the-shelf model built by Spains Pal Robotics wont be doing any real work. Its a tablet on wheels, designed to trundle around tourist centers and dole out directions. The same can be said of many other high-profile bots like Pepper, or various home hub robots. The work they do is usually just that of a mobile phone or a security camera. Occasionally, if theyre big enough, theyll knock over a child, just to break up the routine.

But as in 15th-century England, these particular robots are serving another, more important purpose. Historical accounts of the Rood of Grace are divided over whether or not pilgrims were actually fooled by the mechanical Christ. Did they believe they were witnessing a miracle, or were they just impressed by the technology and what it represented: the power and wealth of the Church.

the robots that will actually take our jobs are far less exciting

Similarly, although the practical uses of Dubais new robot are limited, as a symbol its potent. The government of the United Arab Emirates is currently pursuing its Vision 2021 strategy a plan to shift the countrys economy away from oil-dependence to a diverse mix of technologically advanced industries. Part of this involves embracing automation, from artificial intelligence to driverless cars and drones. And, yes, that will include robots working for the police, but they wont be humanoid because thats not practical. Theyll be like this CCTV-equipped self-driving car; one that Dubais police force is also testing just with less fanfare.

Many robots we see today are simply avatars of larger economic and technological forces. It is absolutely certain that in the years to come, the tools of automation (including the robots we dont see; hidden away in factories and warehouses) will destroy some jobs, create others, and dramatically reshape societies around the world. Whether or not governments can stop these changes harming workers is another question. Although lots of news coverage of robots and AI veers between wild apocalyptic predictions and a sort of bemused wonderment, we need to split the difference and consider the real, unexciting challenges ahead most of which will have political, not technological, solutions.

Just like the congregants in Boxley Abbey, the questions we should be asking when we see these marvels are: who is pulling the strings here, and what is it they want from us?

1The Restless Clock: A History of the Centuries-Long Argument Over What Makes Living Things Tick, Jessica Riskin

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Please ignore the robots - The Verge