Rediscovering this sci-fi classic and reflections on the new Age of Artificial Intelligence

We are now entering a new age of Artificial Intelligence. AI will impact our lives and professions on a similar or bigger scale than the Industrial Revolution did. It’ll be a hot topic for many years to come. I, Robot was written in 1950 by Isaac Asimov, with a few short stories portraying humans and their interactions with intelligent robots.

The concerns expressed in the book are still concerns being discussed today about the future of AI. Even though we’re not technologically there yet, it’s a fun starting point to anyone interested in understanding issues that could come about with the inclusion of truly intelligent robots in society. Even if they are programmed to follow something like the Three Laws of Robotics.

Asimov was not only one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time, he was also a scientist and a professor of biochemistry. I suggest going on YouTube and watching some of his interviews.

Science fiction is a genre that does a good job of diving into different points of time and exploring complex scenarios, specially dystopian ones. They give us an image of problems that could occur in the future and help us become aware of where our current technological developments could take us.

We are starting to see things like the robot Sophia getting a citizenship in Saudi Arabia, even though it’s a PR stunt and not a truly intelligent robot. Nevertheless, it already raises questions about the dangers of making a robot look and act like a human, because of its incapability of any type of emotion. When it states that it “loves” something or has a particular taste, how can we trust it?

Having said that, AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) — AI that can think like humans is very far, possibly decades, from happening. However, development is fast and the big four of tech (Google, Amazon, FB, Apple) are investing heavily in it. There’s also an AI race happening between nations, mainly the US and China who seek dominance in the industry.

For now, AI is here to augment our lives and it’s something we should be excited about. I recommend I, Robot to anyone wanting to travel into the future and visualise where AI could take us.