Do Robots Have a Race?

Despite their mechanical nature, people seem to impose racial identities on robots. That’s a problem.

Maybe a white robot blends in a little better with its surroundings, you might reason. Or maybe it just looks a little more pleasing because it doesn’t swallow as much light as a darker robot would. Or maybe we envision robots in a bright future, and white robots look kind of bright.

You might think that this is over the top and argue that robots aren’t human. You might also argue that any normal person wouldn’t treat a robot like a fellow human because surely people aren’t that stupid. Unfortunately, that’s far from the truth.

And now, evidence is building that people tend to prefer white robots over other colors. Of course, this preference isn’t really about the robots themselves. At this point in history, at least, robots don’t have consciousness. So, it’s not like you’re going to hurt a black robot emotionally or materially by…

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