Special Report: Trusting Robots

In the not-so-distant future, we will begin entrusting to robotic systems such vital tasks as driving a car, performing surgery, and choosing when to apply lethal force in a war zone. As we describe in this report, ever more autonomous machines will present challenges spanning technical, regulatory, and even philosophical realms. They will force us to confront deep moral quandaries, and might even tweak our sense of who we are. If robots are going to drive our cars and play with our kids, we'll need to teach them right from wrong Here's how six of the coolest surgical robots are transforming the operating room Six month's worth of beta-testing is showing what works and what needs tweaking