Researchers create robots that can learn to lie and deceive, on purpose

Teaching robots to find "food" and share it with others seems like a fairly worthwhile and noble endeavor, no? Well, it apparently wasn't quite enough for a group of researchers from Switzerland's Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, who had the bright idea to augment said robots with a new artificial neural network that let the robots learn a host of new abilities -- namely, scheming, lying and deceiving. Apparently, in their younger days, the robots would flash a light whenever they found food to let their buddies know where it was, but that of course caused the food to dwindle a lot quicker. After a bit of trial and error and a few tweaks from the researchers, however, the robots apparently discovered that they could keep more of the food for themselves if they didn't flash the light, and it seems like its been Lord of the Flies on an incredibly tiny scale ever since.

[Via Switched]

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 23rd 2009 11:33PM]

The point is that it's run by a neural net. The researchers didn't just tell it "stop flashing the light". They gave it a goal to accomplish, and let the neural net sort out how to accomplish it. As it happens the robots figured out that not reporting the find was the best way to do it, so it modified it's existing programming appropriately. It's true that this isn't quite "lying" as we know it, but it is a bit more sophisticated than a modchip or a virtual drive. It's a small step, but the point is it's one we can build on as we continue to design more complex AIs.

[GGG Posted Aug 22nd 2009 11:37AM]

Maybe Google Translate did that translation wrong to deceive us.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 26th 2009 3:19PM]

great closer to judgment day

[viet0wnage Posted Aug 22nd 2009 11:38AM]

This was already invented, and he's named Bender.

[RafterManFMJ Posted Aug 22nd 2009 11:45AM]

Already invented, called Al Gore.

Biddy biddy biddy here come's man-made global warming, buck. biddy biddy biddy

[RafterManFMJ Posted Aug 22nd 2009 11:43AM]

Finally, the ultimate replacement for call center service reps.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2009 12:04PM]

Much more interesting article than the one posted.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2009 12:43PM]

CYLONS! INVASION OF THE CYLONS! OMG!

[LeiTxo Posted Aug 22nd 2009 1:23PM]

Robots/electronics should NEVER lie! Can you imagine a calculator lying to you? It'll tell you that ( 7 x 1144 ) doesn't equal BOOB anymore! Can you live without BOOB on your calculator? I certainly can NOT.

[engadgetjp Posted Aug 22nd 2009 2:30PM]

Obviously this Chinese originally doesn't know how to write Chinese. It doesn't make sense from the beginning. It's not Google's fault. Google on the other hand did a great job translating that piece of crap.

[npChaos Posted Aug 22nd 2009 3:01PM]

Oh I almost had a heart attack there, I thought it said:

"maiming, scheming, lying and deceiving"

[eNOrMOus7 Posted Aug 22nd 2009 3:39PM]

Link this article to this one
http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/22/video-robot-hand-shows-off-amazing-dexterity-speed/

To me it seems like ''Judgement day'' isn't far

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2009 9:31PM]

Wait....robots eat?

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2009 5:31PM]

Oh good. We've taught them to lie. Now when we ask them "Will you kill us and enslave us?" we won't fear the answer.

[Sinick Posted Aug 22nd 2009 11:16PM]

In other words, robot intelligence that emulates that of human beings. Somewhere, Isaac Asimov is rolling in his grave.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2009 6:35PM]

بہت زبردست آرٹیکل ھے، شاباش انگیجگٹ

[LonnieDVD Posted Aug 22nd 2009 6:56PM]

Teaching Robots to lie? Talk about a VERY stupid idea. I guess these boys didn't watch Terminator, or Battlestar Galactica. Everyone get ready to join the Resistance in 20 years!

[tamosius Posted Aug 22nd 2009 7:37PM]

Sounds like a bug in their software..

[M C Posted Aug 23rd 2009 1:51AM]

Google translated it properly (it hasn't learned to lie yet).

The robot that wrote it just wanted to deceive us.

[DRoizman Posted Aug 23rd 2009 6:45AM]

Well this is very philosophical, if everthing the robots say is a lie, than how can that be asserted? True? or paradoxically False ?
Either, they should re-program it to understand and interpret lies...

[Stapyhlococcus Posted Aug 23rd 2009 9:01AM]

Who thinks of making these stuff? Why would they think this might be helpful to humanity in anyway? Evil people!

[M C Posted Aug 24th 2009 1:25AM]

i loled a little

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 24th 2009 8:03PM]

Teddy is a liar!

[sharibetsu Posted Aug 25th 2009 12:25AM]

Mister robot is that a knife in your hand?

Why no little boy it's just a little play thing