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Machine Morality

Will Robots Need Their Own Ethics?

Steve Torrance asks if robots need minds to be moral producers or moral consumers.

Robots present an interesting double picture. We can see them simply as our tools, as things we use. Alternatively we can see them as agents, as embryonic persons. The ethical implications of robotics look very different depending on which of these views we adopt.

Considering them as tools akin to cars or factory control systems, ‘robot ethics’ solely concerns our responsibilities towards the human community and the environment in our use of robot technology.

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