10 Signs That We're Headed For The Robot Uprising

6. They're Already Being Designed To Disobey Asimov's Laws

In sci-fi, a major plot point involving robots is usually that they are programmed not to harm humans in accordance with Isaac Asimov's first law of robotics. The laws are as follows:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

In Asimov's fictional universe, and many that have followed it, these laws were woven into the very programming of all robots and were incontrovertible. Although the laws were meant as a literary device, many believe they form a pretty good basis for creating real-world AI.

Others, however, thought it was best to create a robot that tasers people in the balls.

Other robots currently in development are being taught to disobey human orders if they think that harm will come to them, and one has been programmed for the express purpose of punching human beings. Granted, this is for the purpose of developing robots that can't harm humans, but it's a slippery slope.