Mama Mia It's Sophia: A Show Robot Or Dangerous Platform To Mislead?

A collective eyebrow was raised by the AI and robotics community when the robot Sophia was given Saudia citizenship in 2017 The AI sharks were already circling as Sophia's fame spread with worldwide media attention. Were they just jealous buzz-kills or is something deeper going on? Sophia is not the first show robot to attain celebrity status. Yet accusations of hype and deception have proliferated about the misrepresentation of AI to public and policymakers alike. In an AI-hungry world where decisions about the application of the technologies will impact significantly on our lives, Sophia's creators may have crossed a line.