Rishi Sunak made me think of robots. In his pre-election speech, the Prime Minister suggested that while artificial intelligence can be dangerous, it can also provide opportunities for progress; So much so, he claimed, that its effects could be even more significant than the industrial revolution. But what would these effects look like at home? Could these robots help with household chores? Or help me take care of my children? Sunak suggested AI will affect almost 40 per cent of jobs – is nannying one of them?
I wondered how an AI robot nanny could be advertised. “Are you tired of the endless search for a reliable, trustworthy and attractive babysitter? Look no further! The solution to all your childcare needs is… an AI robot nanny.” To be honest, I didn't care for the idea. There's unwavering reliability, no more last-minute cancellations or unexpected days off. They could be available 24 hours a day, they wouldn't get tired or sick of their kids, and they could probably also load the dishwasher and fold the laundry, leaving us parents more time to spend with our kids. The only big drawback? They lack emotional connection.
It doesn't matter, I think as I imagine the advantages of a future with AI nannies. My children receive love from me; I just need backup support. I'm a single mom with a six and eight year old, and frankly, the idea of having a robot nanny available is an absolute dream. Of course, I know there are ethical concerns. As Nick Hawes, professor of AI and robotics in the Department of Engineering Sciences at the University of Oxford, points out: “Who is responsible if you leave your child with a robot and something goes wrong?” Had not thought of that…
Hawes tells me that a robot nanny is “possible, but there is still a long way to go. Maybe five or ten years.” There is currently great interest and a lot of money being invested in building humanoid robots, he adds. However, the autonomy and intelligence of these machines is still very limited. “There are demonstrations of robots that load a dishwasher and maybe move some items across surfaces, and that's really cutting edge,” he tells me. “[But] “It will be a long way until technology can develop emotional intelligence as well as human intelligence.”
Presumably, an AI robot would be a one-time purchase. Or do you rent them? I wonder what a babysitting robot would be like. “Beyond a humanoid form,” Hawes says, “who knows? Maybe it has four legs, instead of two. Maybe it has six legs. I don't know. As a father, I also want 10 arms and more cameras.”
Maybe I've been looking too much black mirror, but the idea of robots living among us doesn't seem like a huge leap of imagination to me. I have seen images of Ai-Da (pronounced Ada), a realistic artist robot created and built in the United Kingdom, who makes art and poetry and “spoke” to the House of Lords in 2022. She had a black bob, orange shirt and gray overalls, even a dimple in his chin and a strangely ethereal voice.
The cybersecurity aspects are terrifying. If you get out of the shower and walk past a robot babysitter with a towel on, is the robot recording that? Is that being transmitted to the cloud?
Nick Hawes, professor of AI and robotics
For something more complex, however, there's nothing on the market for parents yet. There are robots that can sing, dance, and tell bedtime stories, and robots that can monitor your blood pressure and learn the floor plans of your house so they can move between rooms and deliver things to you. But none of these creations are yet up to par for a babysitting job, says Dr. Emmanuel Senft, a research scientist at Switzerland's Idiap Research Institute and head of its Human-Centered Robotics and Artificial Intelligence group.
“If we want a robot to do the simplest babysitting job, for example checking that a child is sleeping or letting parents know if the child is crying, we are probably already there or very close, and in fact a simple camera may be enough,” says Senft. “But if we want a robot that can cook, load a dishwasher, provide children with fundamental values and help them develop properly, then we are quite far away and may never reach it.”
However, he admits he might be “surprised by the progress” in the coming years. “It is often said that what may be easy for a human may be very difficult for a machine, and what may be difficult for a human may be very easy for a machine,” he says. “For example, only recently did we achieve [get a robot to] automatically detect a bird in an image; It's called computer vision. But finding the solution to complex calculations is very easy for a robot.”
However, the main challenge in creating a robot nanny is that it is very difficult to create a model with all the developed aspects available: mobility, perception, expression and manipulation. “There are very good robots in each of these categories. For example, Boston Dynamics' Atlas has impressive mobility,” she says of the robot that is capable of running, jumping and performing the perfect backflip. “Similarly, the Ameca robot from Engineered Arts is very expressive. He has a face capable of generating expressions. However, these capabilities remain a challenge on their own, and having a robot that is good in all areas is even more difficult.”
Making a robot look human is also difficult. “If the robot is even a little out of place, it can be off-putting to the humans around it,” he says. “This effect [in robotics] It's called the 'uncanny valley.'” Cost also remains a major obstacle. “The more complex, the more tasks, the more difficult and the more expensive.”
But more importantly, he adds, do we really want a society with robot nannies taking care of our children's education and development? “Personally, I think robots could help, but they shouldn't be planned to replace humans, and that's my opinion on robots in general: they should be there to enhance humans, not replace them,” she says. “Children need social interactions for healthy development; I don't think we should rely entirely on robots to provide them.”
While Senft believes parents should have the freedom to decide how they want their children to interact with AI, it should “support healthy development.” Likewise, Hayes questions the benefits of a robot nanny, both in terms of safety and on an emotional level. “You have to understand the technology in your home; it's equally true when you give your kids a phone and let them install apps on it,” she says. “The cybersecurity aspects are terrifying. If you get out of the shower and walk past a robot babysitter with a towel on, is the robot recording that? Is that being transmitted to the cloud?
Researchers have been expressing concern about robot nannies for years. In Noel and Amanda Sharkey's 2010 article, “The Crying Shame of Robot Nannies: An Ethical Appraisal,” they raise questions about “human rights, privacy, use of restraint by robots, deception of children and accountability.” The most “pressing” ethical issue they discuss is the impact on children's psychological and emotional well-being, citing “cognitive and linguistic impairments” as well as attachment disorders.
I would definitely pull the plug on the nanny if my kids started feeling love for her, when it clearly couldn't be reciprocated. But these researchers have also found that “occasional use” of a machine may be no more harmful than watching TV or using an iPad for a few hours, especially if the child is well attached to his or her primary caregiver.
While it looks like my dream of having an AI nanny will come true, it may be too late. My kids may have grown up and outgrown the intense babysitting phase. But, as Hawes says: “It may not benefit us as parents, but these robots will take care of us in our old age.”
While it seems like the idea of an AI nanny will one day become a reality, it may be too late for my own needs. By then my kids will probably be grown and out of the intense babysitting phase. However, when she becomes a grandmother, things could get interesting. Will my grandchildren need me beyond an occasional hug because the robot has taken care of everything else? Will I worry, like all grandmothers do, that my precious little ones are in danger from a robot gone rogue? All questions for another day. But for now, I would do anything to have an AI babysitter at my disposal. As long as my children understand that it is not a genuine article incomparable to humanity: it is just metal, wires and a helping hand.
