Shaping the future with robotics and AI

The use of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) in a wide variety of areas of our lives will lead to fundamental changes in our society. These new technologies have the potential to help solve the major challenges of our time, and their applications are many and varied.

(from Mark Coeckelbergh, Martina Mara, Erich Schweighofer, Andreas Kugi, Sabine K?szegi, Matthias Scheutz, Franz H?ller, Corinna Engelhardt-Nowitzki, Fridolin Herkommer, Lynn Kaack)

Dangerous, monotonous, unhealthy or strenuous tasks can be taken over by robotic systems. AI can contribute to better and earlier diagnosis and treatment of diseases, and robots can enhance?and improve the autonomy and quality of life of elderly and/or?people in need of care. Robotics and AI can contribute to securing the?international competitiveness of our companies and thus create or maintain jobs in the long term.?

However, these opportunities are also confronted with complex challenges that need to be identified and solved. The new technologies will not only bring about changes and new requirements in the world of work, they also raise ethical, legal and social issues that need to be discussed and resolved by decision-makers from all sectors of society.

"It is crucial that we take action now and shape the conditions that determine the world in which we want to live in the future."

Following cornerstones for robotics and AI strategy can be a valuable guideline:

1. Smart Governance

Everybody should benefit from robotics and AI technologies. We are convinced that a broad participation of all stakeholders, but especially of citizens in the strategy process is necessary to increase the acceptance of the new technologies. This will only succeed if people's needs and fears are also taken seriously.

2. Smart Innovation

We need an accurate research, development and investment policy in order to exploit the potential of robotics and AI technologies in all their areas of application, and thus open up new markets and applications. In doing so, it will be necessary to pay particular attention to the small and medium-sized structure of the economy. This will strengthen economies worldwide and secure domestic jobs and prosperity.

3. Smart Regulation

Stable and secure framework conditions are the prerequisite for the confidence of economic actors and the positive development of markets. The use of robotics and AI must ensure the safety of people and must comply with ethical standards, fundamental rights and a human-friendly value system. Wherever existing norms and standards are not sufficient to ensure this, new standards and norms need to be developed without inhibiting innovation.

"We need new and creative ways to defuse the tension between innovation and regulation."

SOURCE: Excerpt from the Whitepaper of the Austrian Council on Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. ACRAI is an advisory board of the Austrian Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK, formerly BMVIT). It consists of experts on robotics and artificial intelligence from research, teaching and industry and identifies and discusses current and future opportunities, risks and challenges arising from the use of robotics and autonomous systems (RAS) as well as artificial intelligence (AI). The council's mandate has ended with October, 2021. In the Whitepaper, the Council identifies top?priorities for developing a smart strategy for robotics and artificial intelligence.