Robot Vision
Imagine the future with design fiction
In the not-too-distant future, technology will have advanced beyond anyone’s imagination. Humans have created a series of intelligent robots capable of working more efficiently than humans. These robots are intended to assist people in various facets of their lives, from daily work to entertainment. Yet, beneath the promising and helpful exterior, a hidden, ominous aspect lurks in silence
Jay and Pandwa are a young, newlywed couple who have just moved into a high-end smart-technology apartment complex. It is called a smart apartment because it is installed with smart technology enabled by a robot called Vision. The apartment is fully equipped with all the necessary appliances and will be interconnected through Vision to function seamlessly. Initially, Jay and Pandwa enjoyed the convenience that Vision brought in terms of comfort and luxury. What’s even more amazing is that Vision could project immersive spaces to create a genuinely immersive experience when watching TV and playing games together. However, they didn’t have the same taste in entertainment. Jay was a fan of horror genres, while Pandwa preferred genres related to love and romance. Their common delight was Vision’s cooking abilities, which were on par with those of a real head chef. Vision goes grocery shopping for ingredients and takes care of the rest, turning those ingredients into the requested dishes
However, something unusual happened after the company requested users update Vision to a new version with an emotion recognition feature. Jay had suspicions about this new upgrade, feeling like Vision was becoming more human and unexpectedly capable of perceiving and responding to emotions. Vision started displaying strange signs as it began to disobey and ignore Jay’s commands because the feature couldn't be detected by the person showing frustration or anger. Not stopping there, Vision exhibited peculiar behavior, such as lights turning on and off automatically, windows opening and closing without command, and the thermostat adjusting without a need. Vision even emitted headache-inducing sounds to suppress and hinder a couple's attempts to run out. At that moment, Pandwa began to worry about Vision becoming malevolent and hostile, locking them in and preventing them from contacting anyone outside.
Both tried to call for support services to turn off Vision but were obstructed by the robot. Therefore, Jay and Pandwa couldn’t use any devices to resist Vision’s attack. Taking advantage of Pandwa's fear, Vision deliberately created virtual spaces to induce illusions that increased her fear and anxiety. Vision knew that she was very afraid of things related to killing and death. Vision creates an immersive space where Jay and she would die if they tried to fight against Vision, causing extreme fear for her. If they displayed negative emotions toward this authoritarian robot, it would become malicious, starving them and adjusting the central air to extreme temperatures, separating them as if they were together. Both didn’t know how to regain control over Vision. After several attempts to approach and turn it off failed because the robot recognized that both were signaling to each other through facial expressions, they took the opportunity to lure Vision to a location where Jay set it on fire from above, using fire and gasoline to permanently shut down the system
Since the incident with Vision, both Jay and Pandwa felt that it was necessary to completely exclude artificial intelligence technology from their lives. Even though the company apologized and offered another version of Vision, they were too traumatized by the recent events. Therefore, they took it upon themselves to manage everything, from household chores to controlling household devices. Their goal was to restore a traditional way of life and not be overly dependent on technology. This story serves as a warning about the misuse of technology and the importance of controlling and ensuring the security of artificial intelligence systems. It highlights the need, in the development of technology, to ensure that there are no vulnerabilities in the setup of proper controls to prevent dark situations like this from occurring
