Dead Horse Interchange

We need a team against malicious sex robots

"Sex robots" and "sex dolls" reinforce and normalize the view of women as objects and normalize men's violence against women.

It is time for stricter legislation so that new technology does not reproduce values ​​about exploiting women's bodies, writes Sweden's women's lobby, Roks and Unizon.

DEBATE | SEXROBOTS. We were able to read the news in Dagens Nyheter that so-called "sex robots" are ready to be shipped out from a factory in San Diego to men who are willing to buy human-like, AI-driven robots with the purpose of obeying and performing sexual acts whenever the owner pleases . In November, Finland's first brothel was opened with so-called "sex dolls". In December, the news came that the customs seized "sex dolls" ordered online, which are similar to children. A first thought is that this is a harmless phenomenon because the robots are just products and not people, but the presence of these robots says a lot about our time. Why are men willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars for a robot that obeys their smallest command?

Robots for rapists and pedophiles

Many of the "sex robots" and "sex dolls" that are produced have the appearance and attributes typical of the objectifying, sexualized and humiliated woman found in today's mainstream pornography. She also says no to something that the man wants, if she is not programmed to do so. Many robots are even programmed to exhibit resistance so that the man who has sex with the robot can live out his rape fantasies. It is also not unusual for both robots and dolls to represent children, so that adult men can simulate child abuse.

From previous research in similar areas, we know that the type of fantasies that are stimulated by new technology often lead to real violence against girls and women. Clear parallels can be drawn to pornography research where the link between consumption of pornography leads to sexist attitudes towards women and actual violence. If pornography that many are perceived as "watching something" can inspire abuse, what do we expect that human-like robots that men interact with should lead to?

Dangerous dehumanization

AI and ethics researcher Kathleen Richardson believes that the dehumanization of certain groups, in this case women, justifies slavery and the exploitation of the female body through new technology is part of this. Don't let the technological development be controlled by the sex industry. The development of new technology will make it easier for people, make the world a more equal and equal place, not the other way around!