The rise of robots: forget evil AI – the real risk is far more insidious

It's far more likely that robots would inadvertently harm or frustrate humans while carrying out our orders than they would rise up against us

When we look at the rise of artificial intelligence, it's easy to get carried away with dystopian visions of sentient machines that rebel against their human creators. Fictional baddies such as the Terminator's Skynet or Hal from 2001: A Space Odyssey have a lot to answer for.

However, the real risk posed by AI - at least in the near term - is much more insidious. It's far more likely that robots would inadvertently harm or frustrate humans while carrying out our orders than they would become conscious and rise up against us. In recognition of this, the University of California, Berkeley has this week launched a center to focus on building people-pleasing AIs.