Autonomous armed robots can select and destroy targets without human control

Evidence

Pilotless drones are being heralded as the weapons system of the 21st century. The military is already experimenting with robotic weapons systems in ground warfare to keep personnel out of harm’s way under especially hazardous circumstances. Some countries are developing autonomous robotic systems in which armed robots select and demolish targets without human control. In this new phase of robotic technology, autonomous combat drones are programmed to take off, perform a mission, and fly back without requiring any human guidance (Parker, 2013). — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 472

Categorization

• XREF: Pairs naturally with the paradoxes of ‘surgical’ warfare and later drone-death-permission literature in moral psychology. — connects to: Weapons acceleration can abolish human political decision in favor of automation — Hartmut Rosa, Social Acceleration: A New Theory of…, 17