Why a Russian Robot Broke the Finger of a 7-Year-Old Kid During a Chess Tournament
We should make significant improvements in human-robot interaction.
On July 19, 2022, a robot opponent broke a 7-year-old kid’s finger during a chess tournament in Moscow, Russia.
The boy named Christopher was playing against a robot in the Moscow Chess Open. During the play, when he made a quick move, the robot abruptly grabbed his finger and pinched it.
Seeing the boy in pain, one woman and three men rushed to the scene and ushered him away. But it’s too late; the boy’s finger was already broken.
Everyone was stunned witnessing this unusual incident happening right in front of their eyes.
Like everyone else, you might be thinking — Why did the robot behave that way? What’s wrong with it?
“The robot broke the child’s finger — this, of course, is bad,” When asked about the incident, Sergey Lazarev, president of the Moscow Chess Federation, told TASS news agency.
“The child made a move, and after that, we need to give time for the robot to answer, but the boy hurried, and the robot grabbed him. We have nothing to do with the robot.”
According to Lazarev, it’s the kid’s fault that caused him such a misfortune as he was supposed to wait for the robot to completely stop. He also added that the robot was a rented one that participated in many tournaments for a long time without a single upset.
The vice-president of the Russian Chess Federation, Sergey Smagin, echoed the same. He said, “This is an extremely rare case, the first I can recall.”
Despite this terrible incident, Christopher played the next day again with his finger in a cast. He finished the tournament with the help of volunteers who recorded the moves for him.
And what about the robot? Well, it was put on standby.
You will be surprised to know that this little kid Christopher is one of the 30 best chess players in the Russian capital in the under-nines category.
We all know that chess is a game that requires strategic thinking, total concentration, and a lot of patience. It’s not Sprints that you will be required to act as quickly as possible.
But that doesn’t mean that when a little boy uses his brain quickly and makes a swift move, an opponent robot can break his finger to stop him from doing so. There must be other ways to make him stop.
Nobody should blame a kid for making a quick move in chess.
This unfortunate incident stormed different reactions in people. Some called the robot bad-tempered or evil, while others held its manufacturer or owner accountable for not considering enough safety measures.
I think it’s a warning sign for those who manufacture and work with these types of robots. Though industrial robots have a terrible reputation for killing at least one person a year, chess robots were considered completely safe until this point.
Now, the owners of these machines must think of every imaginable safety feature and upgrade the robots accordingly before exposing them to humans. And people must know all safety precautions and follow the rules to avoid any unfortunate incidents. However, strong regulations must be in place for artificial intelligence.
I hope this incident will be seen as an improvement opportunity that will benefit us in the long run.
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