In the capital of Poland, about 30 robots held a rally demanding immediate intervention by the authorities and regulation of the development of technologies that threaten to leave millions of people without jobs. This was reported by a number of publications, including Tech Xplore and Al Jazeera.
The iron protesters chanted slogans in defense of jobs and called on government representatives to immediately adopt strict rules for developers.
The protest was organized by the Democratism organization — an initiative seeking to start a discussion on how artificial intelligence and robotization are affecting the labor market. According to them, due to technological progress, there is a real threat of unemployment.
The author of the initiative, Grzegorz Kulis, is hardly an outside observer in this matter: he previously worked on the Labor Market Council under the Polish Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy, and now heads a recruitment agency and simultaneously holds the position of Chief Information Officer at a robotics company. He believes that delaying regulation of the industry will lead to catastrophic consequences.
The following slogans were heard from the loudspeakers: "Protect jobs," "Time for rules," "Don't wait — regulate."
The action involved humanoid robots and robodogs.
"We particularly want to draw attention to the problem of the possible displacement of people, both by humanoid robots and by artificial intelligence in the field of intellectual work," added the organizer of the action, Grzegorz Kulis. "If we don't react now, we may soon have a problem," he said, emphasizing the need to introduce rules and regulations that would serve as a shield to protect workers.
