Researchers behind a new study, published in Science Robotics, have developed a robotic arm with knowledge of its physical form – a basic sense of self. This is nevertheless an important step. There is no perfect scientific explanation of what exactly constitutes the human sense of self. Emerging studies from neuroscience shows that cortical networks in the motor and parietal areas of the brain are activated in many contexts where we are not physically moving. For example, hearing words such as "pick or kick" activate the motor areas of the brain.

The democratization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is in the top 5 technology trends identified by the majority of research organizations out there. The concept, going by its definition, is simple to grasp and envision. The complexities of it, however, come to light when you get down to the process, the implications, the challenges, the forces behind it, and the specific calls to action. That's what will be the focus of this article, starting with the basics as follows. To answer that, let's look at the meaning of the word "democratization".

Having a sense of self lies at the heart of what it means to be human. Without it, we couldn't navigate, interact, empathise or ultimately survive in an ever-changing, complex world of others. We need a sense of self when we are taking action, but also when we are anticipating the consequences of potential actions, by ourselves or others. Given that we want to incorporate robots into our social world, it's no wonder that creating a sense of self in artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the ultimate goals for researchers in the field. If these machines are to be our carers or companions, they must inevitably have an ability to put themselves in our shoes.