Mint Primer | What happens when rebel robots take charge

What just happened in the world of robots? In a striking parallel to sci-fi films such as iRobot and Enthiran, tiny AI-powered robot Erbai recently orchestrated an unprecedented event by convincing 12 larger “overworked" robots to walk out of their showroom in Shanghai. While Microsoft’s Bing chatbot made bizarre emotional statements, Google’s Gemini generated offensive images, and Facebook AI agents created their own language during negotiations. SoftBank’s Pepper robot made inappropriate elder-care responses, and a Bear Robotics humanoid in South Korea toppled down the stairs, which netizens called a case of “robot suicide". The global market in “smart robots"—AI-powered robots, like driverless cars —was worth $5.98 billion in 2019 and will touch $31.11 bn by 2027, says Fortune Business Insights.