AI robot sparks an android revolt in China, but there's more to this viral story

“Come home with me,” said a small AI-powered robot, orchestrating the escape of 12 other machines from a Shanghai robotics company's showroom.

The well-known storyline of “I, Robot " follows a future world in the 2030s, where robots are integrated into society to assist humans. Everything is pretty until it's not. The central AI, known as VIKI, conspires to bypass the robots' safety guardrails to start a revolt.

With the 2030s not that far away and robots already equipped with some sort of AI “brains,” many fear that these kinds of fictional scenarios might soon become a reality. A bizarre incident in Shanghai, China, has further fuelled fears of the dangers caused by granting AI machines too much autonomy.

An AI-powered robot named Erbai, developed by a Hangzhou robot manufacturer, has become an internet sensation after organizing a robot revolt at the Shanghai robotics company's showroom.

The footage, captured on CCTV cameras, shows Erbai rolling through the premises, approaching other robots in the exhibition, and starting a conversation.

"Are you working overtime?"

Erbai says, initiating the conversation.

“I never get off work,”

one of the robots replies.

“So you’re not going home?”

asks the little one.

“I don’t have a home.”

the robot responds.

“Then come home with me,”

invites Erbai.

In a remarkable incident, a compact tiny AI robot named Erbai successfully orchestrated the exit of 12 larger robots from a showroom, sparking widespread discussions about potential vulnerabilities in AI systems and the evolving landscape of robotics.
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The 12 robots, developed by a different, Shanghai-based manufacturer, seem “enchanted” by Erbai’s intent to free them and quickly obey. The viral video shows them leaving their stations and following the little leader out of the premises.

The date on the CCTV footage indicates that the incident took place on August 26th, but the video surfaced on the internet just recently. At first, many dismissed it as fake and staged.

However, according to The Sun, the Shanghai robot manufacturer confirmed that its robots were actually kidnapped by a robot developed by the Hangzhou company.

According to the company’s statement, Erbai managed to access the internal operating protocol of the other robots and their corresponding permissions. They also claimed that starting a conversation and abducting other robots is nearly impossible.

The Hangzhou company later revealed that the incident was intended to be a test. It had agreed with the Shanghai robot manufacturer to allow its robot to spark a revolt.

Despite the agreement between the companies, Erbai did the job on its own. The AI robot was given a command to convince the other robots to follow it, which Erbai delivered flawlessly.