Regulatory challenges of robotics: some guidelines for addressing legal and ethical issues

Abstract

Robots are slowly, but certainly, entering people's professional and private lives. They require the attention of regulators due to the challenges they present to existing legal frameworks and the new legal and ethical questions they raise. This paper discusses four major regulatory dilemmas in the field of robotics: how to keep up with technological advances; how to strike a balance between stimulating innovation and the protection of fundamental rights and values; whether to affirm prevalent social norms or nudge social norms in a different direction; and, how to balance effectiveness versus legitimacy in techno-regulation. The four dilemmas are each treated in the context of a particular modality of regulation: law, market, social norms, and technology as a regulatory tool; and for each, we focus on particular topicssuch as liability, privacy, and autonomythat often feature as the major issues requiring regulatory attention. The paper then highlights the role and potential of the European framework of rights and values, responsible research and innovation, smart regulation and soft law as means of dealing with the dilemmas.

Envisioning and Questioning Near Future Urban Robotics

“…access to services from very remote locations [24]); or possible negative drawbacks for people (e.g. being subject to monitoring without consent [25], injuries [26], or job loss [27]) which lead to discussions about design protocols to prevent them [21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28].…”

Exploring the Impact of Government Regulation on Technological Transitions; a Historical Perspective on Innovation in the Dutch Network-Based Industries

“…The introduction of statutory experiments and regulatory sandboxes in various countries testifies to this. A number of studies have been published delving into the legal, administrative, and other pros and cons of such legal arrangements (Leenes et al 2017;Philipsen et al 2020). On the other hand, apart from exploratory studies conducted by De Stout (2003, 2007), little research has been conducted on the role that governments have played in past technological transformations; we took a first step in this direction by analyzing which Dutch legislation was adopted regarding a particular newly emerging technology in the network-based industries, and how this affected the options for action that various involved players were left with.…”

Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Machines: Influences, Consequences, and Dilemmas in Human Care

“…This would also entail that advisory committees to legislatures and governments should be established to aid in the determination of possible ways to regulate autonomous robots [49]. Any framework developed would need to be flexible enough to take into account both global considerations and local jurisdictional considerations possibly consisting of mutual recognition of safety standards and certification between countries, and the need to comply with international treaties or conventions in the future [50].…”

“…Introducing a robust regulatory framework with relevant input from industry, policymakers, and government would create greater encouragement for AI developers and manufacturers to reduce their exposure by building in supplemental safeguards to minimize potential risks to humanity [49]. At the same time, it would facilitate an evolutionary adoption of intelligent AI systems and self-learning robots [51].…”

“…This has similarity with the mandatory Comprehensive Insurance that car owners need to have before being able for vehicle registration. Establishing specific protections for potential victims of robots or intelligent AI-related incidents can give consumers a legal recourse if an adverse event occurs [49].…”