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Ron Arkin and Noel Sharkey debate lethal autonomous weapons at UN


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14 May 2014



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The Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) is currently underway at the United Nations in Geneva to discuss questions relating to emerging technologies in the area of lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS). The four-day meeting, which kicked of yesterday with a debate between Ron Arkin and Noel Sharkey, aims to cover the key issues surrounding the use of autonomous technology on the battlefield. 

While we haven’t been able to track down video of the UN debate, the opposing positions of Arkin and Sharkey can be found on our two-part Robots Podcast episode on robot ethics (Part One, Part Two). The following articles were also distributed by the UN in preparation for the debate:

The Campaign to Stop Killer Robots is holding daily side events at the CCW. For more information, see their agenda.

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Hallie Siegel robotics editor-at-large
Hallie Siegel robotics editor-at-large





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