“Make Your Robot! Responsible Innovation for Care Robotics”: Public engagement event for the Festival of Social Science 2023 (UKRI/ESRC funding)

Over the past five years, my research at the Centre for Biomedicine, Self and Society has delved into AI and robotic healthcare applications, encompassing robot-assisted surgery, algorithms for diagnostic, exoskeletons for rehabilitation, and care robots. Employing qualitative interviews, focus groups, and observation sessions, I have engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, including robotics engineers, data scientists, AI experts, medical practitioners, care workers, and care recipients.

My ongoing Wellcome Fellowship, titled ‘Caring Machines,’ focuses on AI and robotic applications for healthy aging and independent living for people with disabilities. I study technologies that could be used for managing, assessing, monitoring, and reducing frailty among these populations. My fieldwork, spanning 14 months, has taken me to robotics laboratories and assisted living facilities in Japan and the UK. Through my comparative cross-cultural research, I have provided insights into how different ethical frameworks and perspectives on human care influence AI and robotic technologies in healthcare.

The technologies I have observed include robots for use in private homes, care facilities, and hospitals. These technologies encompass humanoid and pet-like social robots, telepresence robots, and mobile manipulators. I also observed examples of care robots for therapy and assisted living. While these technologies are often put forward as ‘solutions’ to the healthcare crisis, however, their effectiveness falls short in practice due to technical limitations and a lack of user involvement in their development.

During fieldwork, I noticed that these technologies are predominantly developed in labs without consulting potential end-users or considering the real needs of care workers and recipients. Moreover, ethical discussions surrounding privacy, inclusivity, accessibility, and fairness are also often inadequate if not inexistent. My collaborators at robotics labs have acknowledged these limitations and expressed willingness to involve potential users more in co-designing these technologies.

To initiate a conversation, I have started organising public engagement events like the one described here, where I invite members of the public to share their views on these technologies. One such event was the Talk and Collage Making Workshop “Make Your Robot!” which I organised as part of the Festival of Social Science 2023 after being granted UKRI/ESRC funding.