Our global society already has human rights and animal rights, so will we have rights for androids or human robots? Should there be laws to protect robot rights? Robots are at risk of violence and their roles will likely become increasingly human.

Children have less consideration for robots than for humans, according to a recent study by the Human Interaction with Nature and Technological Systems Lab (HINTS). Most children think it's okay to lock a robot in a closet. Adults obey robot receptionists in a mall but children often kicked, bullied, or shouted at them in experiments by ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories of Osaka University, Ryukoku University, and Tokai University.

Highly sophisticated robots could deserve protection. But rights for robots are highly controversial. Some scholars believe that giving rights to robots would greatly impact human ethics, society, and security.

Implications for the future

The rise of smart robots and the call for robot rights has led to increasingly detailed definitions of robot rights, ethics, labor law, marriage along with restrictions on robot design.