Category Archives: Media
Video Contest Winner Announced
Next week, states will decide if and how they will continue international talks on autonomous weapons systems at the UN`s Convention on Conventional Weapons in Geneva. We and the whole Campaign to Stop Killer Robots are calling on states to take the next step towards a ban by agreeing to a Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) in 2016. A GGE will allow states to explore the issues surrounding autonomous weapons systems in depth.
With such an important decision looming over states, we are launching the winners of our youth video contest. Last week, we shared the runner-up video.
Today, we are pleased to announce that Steven Hause of Florida State University won the video contest. Steven’s video covers a number of the key concerns the Campaign has about autonomous weapons systems. We hope that this video will remind governments of the need to take action at CCW next week.
Video Contest – Runner Up Announced
In less than two weeks, states will decide if and how they will continue international talks on autonomous weapons systems at the UN`s Convention on Conventional Weapons in Geneva. We and the whole Campaign to Stop Killer Robots are calling on states to take the next step towards a ban by agreeing to a Group of Governmental Experts.
With such an important decision looming over states, we are launching the winners of our youth video contest. This week, we are pleased to present the runner-up video (and top high school video) by Daryl, Henry, Joseph and Anders at Petersburg High School.
Please feel free to share widely!
We thank all those who submitted videos to the contest and congratulate Daryl, Henry, Joseph and Anders on their excellent video. Come back next week to see the winning entry.
Video Contest Launched
**CONTEST IS NOW INTERNATIONAL – STUDENTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD WELCOME TO ENTER**
Mines Action Canada is launching a Keep Killer Robots Fiction video contest for students. We are inviting students from across Canada around the world to make and submit 2 minute video on the theme of “Keep Killer Robots Fiction“.
What is the purpose? The purpose of this competition is to find new, compelling and provocative ways to start a conversation in the public about autonomous weapons systems. Autonomous weapons systems or killer robots are future weapons that can select and fire upon targets without human control.
Killer robots have been a staple trope in fiction and entertainment for years. Over the past decade, the possibility of fully autonomous weapons is becoming closer to reality. Recently we have seen a dramatic rise in unmanned weapons that has changed the face of warfare. New technology is permitting serious efforts to develop fully autonomous weapons. These robotic weapons would be able to choose and fire on targets on their own, without any human intervention. This capability would pose a fundamental challenge to the protection of civilians and to compliance with international human rights and humanitarian law. For clarity it is necessary to note that fully autonomous weapons are not drones; drones have a human pilot in a remote location. Fully autonomous weapons are a large step beyond armed drones. You can learn more about autonomous weapons systems online at: www.stopkillerrobots.ca.
Your submission should illustrate one of the major problems with autonomous weapons systems or ask a question about handing over life and death decisions to a machine:
- A lack of accountability – who is responsible if an autonomous weapon kills the wrong person or malfunctions?
- Inability to distinguish between legitimate and legal targets and others – human soldiers must be able to tell the difference between soldiers and civilians, could a robot ever make that distinction?
- The moral issues surrounding outsourcing life and death decisions to machines – is it right to allow machines to choose to end a human life?
Please don’t limit yourself to these example questions about autonomous weapons, they are intended to inspire you to create some questions of your own to guide your project.
What do I win? The winner or winning team will receive a Go-Pro HERO 4 Silver camera and a 3-way mount.
Who can participate? Submissions will be accepted from any contestant between the ages of 18 and 30 who is currently enrolled in post-secondary education.
How do I enter the competition? Submitting your entry to the video contest is easy! Simply complete these three steps by March 15, 2015:
- Visit the contest entry form on our website, and fill in all of the required information.
- Upload your video to Vimeo and specify the location (URL) on the entry form. Memberships to Vimeo are free.
- Submit your online entry form to the Mines Action Canada team.
The Contest Rules and other information can be found in the Video Contest Announcement. Please read the announcement carefully to ensure that your project is eligible for consideration by our panel of expert judges. The contest entry form is available online at: http://goo.gl/forms/0VOGD6mgTp.
A New Mandate and a New Video
Today at the UN in Geneva, states approved a new mandate for further discussions about autonomous weapons systems in 2015. To celebrate, we are pleased to share our new video on why we need to Keep Killer Robots Fiction.
Remember, students you can make your own killer robots video in our film contest.
New Video on Human Control
This week states are meeting at the United Nations in Geneva to decide if discussion on lethal autonomous weapons systems will continue at the Convention on Conventional Weapons. States should continue to discuss this issue and to debate key problems with autonomous weapons systems. One of the key problems is the issue of human control. Learn more with this new video.
New Video on Proportionality
Proportionality is a key term for international humanitarian law that means any collateral damage must be proportional to the military gain from any action. We are very concerned that fully autonomous weapons systems or killer robots won’t be able to weigh proportionality.
Great Campaign Events in Canada!
Mines Action Canada and the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots hosted a number of events in Ottawa over the past two days to begin the discussion in Canada about autonomous weapons. We were pleased to have Mary Wareham, Global Coordinator of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots and Advocacy Director, Arms Division at Human Rights Watch along with Peter Asaro, Professor at the New School and Vice-Chair of the International Committee for Robot Arms Control (ICRAC) join us and local expert Ian Kerr, in Ottawa for the events. Be sure to check out the great summary of the events on the Campaign’s website.
The two days started with an op-ed by Ian Kerr who holds the Canada Research Chair in Ethics, Law and Technology at the University of Ottawa and is a member of ICRAC.
Opening the public event
On April 28th, we met with other peace, disarmament and development organizations to talk about the campaign and to begin to build a stronger civil society presence in Canada on this issue. There was a lot of a interest from our non-profit colleagues so we look forward to hearing more voices on this issue in the near future.
Later that day, we hosted a public event at Ottawa City Hall. There was a panel discussion with Peter, Paul, Mary and Ian followed by a rather lively Question and Answer session with the audience. The audience was generally quite supportive of the Campaign and our efforts to achieve a pre-emptive ban on autonomous weapons. Audience members with backgrounds in engineering, law, the military and politics all expressed concern about the development of killer robots.
The following morning, MAC hosted a breakfast briefing for parliamentarians and their staff, other NGOs and decision makers in Ottawa. The Bagels and ‘Bots breakfast was the first time some of these decision makers had heard of the issue and it seemed to strike a chord with many in the room. After breakfast, the team was off to Parliament Hill for a press conference. At the press conference and in MAC’s press release, campaigners called for Canadian leadership on this issue internationally and for Canada to be the first country in the world to declare a moratorium on the development and production of killer robots.
The media in Ottawa and across the country have taken quite an interest in these events. The Canadian Press story was picked up in newspapers across the country as well as national media outlets and there was an associated list of facts about killer robots. The Sun News Network, and Ottawa Citizen also covered the Campaign while MAC has received a number of radio interview requests. Paul Hannon, Executive Director, was on CKNW Morning News with Philip Till.
One very exciting result of these activities is that The Globe and Mail’s editorial team has come out in support of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots and our call:
The world has a long banned some weapons deemed dangerous, indiscriminate or inhumane, including chemical weapons and land mines. Autonomous robot weapons carry all such risks, and add new ones to the list. They are not wielded remotely by humans, but are intended to operate without supervision. They’re about turning life and death decisions over to software. Canada should be a leading voice advocating for a global protocol limiting their development and use.
Also Jian Ghomenshi on CBC Radio’s Q called for Canadian leadership on killer robots, he says that leadership on this issue is something Canadians could be proud of and that it could be a legacy issue for Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
The Keep Killer Robots Fiction initiative is off to a great start. You can get involved by signing and sharing the petition at: /KRpetition.
Great new video out of the Netherlands
Our colleagues at PAX in the Netherlands released a great new animated video about the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots today. This video brings to light some of the key issues we are trying to address in this campaign in a fun and informative way.
Check it out and share your thoughts in the comments.
Now the team at PAX wasn’t content just to post an amazing video, they also released a new report today. In Deadly Decisions: 8 objections to killer robots, the team opens with a disconcerting quote from John Pike:
First, you had human beings without machines.
Then you had human beings with machines.
And finally you have machines without human beings.
After that the report outlines eight key objections to the development and use of killer robots. It is definitely worth a read: http://www.paxvoorvrede.nl/media/files/deadlydecisionsweb.pdf.
Great work PAX!
Canadian experts join global call for a ban on killer robots
Canadians are among the 270 engineers, computing and artificial intelligence experts, roboticists, and professionals from related disciplines who have signed an experts’ call to ban killer robots. The experts say “given the limitations and unknown future risks of autonomous robot weapons technology, we call for a prohibition on their development and deployment. Decisions about the application of violent force must not be delegated to machines.”
The International Committee for Robot Arms Control (ICRAC) has thus far received 272 signatures from 37 countries on the statement which continues to collect signatures. In an announcement released today, Professor Noel Sharkey, Chair of ICRAC said “Governments need to listen to the experts’ warnings and work with us to tackle this challenge together before it is too late. It is urgent that international talks get started now to prevent the further development of autonomous robot weapons before it is too late.”
Canada does not currently have a policy on fully autonomous weapons and we hope that the government will engage these experts and others as they create the policy. We expect to see additional signatures from Canadian experts as this issue gains momentum. At present, the University of Toronto has the largest numbers of signatories but experts from other organizations and institutions still have time to sign the call. As the quote below from Geoffrey Hinton indicates now is the time to ensure that artificial intelligence and robotic technologies are used for the betterment of humanity.
“Artificial Intelligence can improve people’s lives in so many ways, but researchers need to push for positive applications of technology by supporting a ban on autonomous weapons systems.”
Geoffrey Hinton FRS, [founding father of modern machine learning] Raymond Reiter Distinguished Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Toronto
Killer Robots at TED
Science fiction author Daniel Suarez, went to TED Global in Edinburgh to talk about lethal autonomous weapons. He brings up some interesting arguments for a global ban on killer robots including the impact on democracy of giving decisions over life and death to machines and the possibility of anonymous warfare where it is impossible to know who is behind an attack. Although he is not a member of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, he is a supporter.
This talk is definitely worth a watch.