Introduction

Killer robots (also known as autonomous weapons) are artificial intelligence-enabled robots that can be used in military combat and other operations. With the aid of preprogrammed descriptions and constraints, killer robots can scan for and target enemies on their own. Robots are now making their way out of the lab and onto the factory floor, and into our daily lives. Despite the fact that military research into robotics and automation has helped to revive the specter of killer robots, Tappeiner claims that robots will continue to serve humans for the foreseeable future, owing to the fact that existing AI techniques fall well short of the capabilities of the human brain.

Killer robots are self-contained weapon systems capable of selecting and attacking targets without the need for human interference. This means the weapon system can use lethal force without a human operator's permission. This may refer to a combat tank, a fighter jet, or a warship, among other weapon systems.

According to a report that surveyed major players in the industry about their stance on lethal autonomous weapons, Amazon, Microsoft (MSFT), and Intel are among the leading tech companies putting the world at risk through killer robot growth.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is finding rising use in the security and military sectors. It simplifies field maneuvers and can save lives when things go wrong. It also improves armies' success by supplying military powers with robot allies. After gunpowder and nuclear weapons, some scholars believe that Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) are ushering in a "Third Revolution" in warfare. It's past time for us to be concerned about the day when armies of robots are capable of conducting hostilities on their own, without the need for humans to order them.

The military's deployment of killer robots has sparked a raging debate about their possible applications and misuse. Science fiction movies such as "The Terminator" and "Transformers," in which robots defeat an evil mastermind or an army of malevolent robots, have always been common. Such robots are no longer science fiction, thanks to advancements in AI. Different forms of robots, such as killer robots, are being considered by military organisations for use in military operations.

According to the research, autonomous weapons and killer robots will make military operations more effective and minimize casualties. Others assume that the creation of killer robots will eventually lead to robot armies battling each other. Both sides have made some convincing points about the military's use of killer robots. As a result, a detailed review of all claims concerning killer robots is required in order to evaluate the most realistic approach to their implementation.

Several countries have already employed killer robots. South Korea's Samsung Techwin security surveillance guard robots can detect targets using infrared sensors in the demilitarized zone it shares with North Korea. The robots have an automatic function that can sense body heat in the demilitarized zone and shoot with an onboard machine gun without the need for human operators, despite the fact that they are currently controlled by humans.

Killer robots are regarded the same as other weapons of war at the international level. There are three ways to restrict their use: by prohibiting them by treaty, restricting their spread through a nonproliferation agreement, or enacting a weapons control system similar to the New START treaty, which restricted the US and Russian nuclear weapon stockpiles. Many countries and non-profit organizations have called for a ban on LAWS, including the Campaign to Human Rights Watch and to Stop Killer Robots.

Concerns about killer robots are also have an effect on their military procurement and development; cautious defense planners are hesitant to spend millions of dollars on autonomous weapons systems that may be outlawed before they are even developed. For instance, in 2019, a key German company and security organization, including Rheinmetall, called on the government to work on a new treaty to prohibit killer robots. This demonstrates how the most successful way to overcome mounting confusion about what is appropriate and unacceptable in the context of increasingly complex autonomous weapons systems is to regulate through a new treaty.

Conclusion

Countries readily accept that LAWS are likely to be a risky and destabilizing technology for any military to implement, but no powerful state is able to foreclose the creation of a potentially revolutionary technology like AI. The suffocating logic of an arms race is increasingly eroding the prospects of an international agreement to avoid the spread or use of LAWS and other automated systems. Despite the threats and alerts from experts and diplomats all over the world, the global AI arms race is picking up. Unfortunately, as with U-boats in World War I and nuclear arms in World War II, the international system is unlikely to limit the unregulated use of LAWS only after they have committed massacres.