Is it possible the space station engineers in China failed to watch Stanley Kubrick’ film 2001: A Space Odyssey?
I ask this because earlier this summer the Chinese government installed an artificial intelligence chatbot named Wukong on the Tiangong space station. It is designed to assist the taikonauts with navigation and tactical information planning.
A Wired magazine story noted:
Wukong AI assisted the crew on a six-and-a-half-hour mission, which involved taikonauts installing space debris protection devices during a spacewalk and performing a routine inspection of the station.
Doesn’t that sound a little like the situation in the movie involving the supercomputer HAL 9000, when HAL had a different idea about its role in the mission? I’m not sure I would be comfortable leaving the space station.
The same story also highlights how the International Space Station has its own computer helpers, including small flying Astrobees that can assist the astronauts with routine tasks.
Forbes magazine reported that NASA is already conducting “war games” with these Astrobee robots to see if they can be used for offensive purposes to protect the astronauts. What could go wrong?
These are interesting times with AI and robots on Earth and in space. I just hope the engineers have time to watch a few science fiction movies as well to prepare for that future.
Our Awesome Universe 