Ws I was watching videos of the recent AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva that featured the first world press conference with humanoid robots and reporters, I texted one of my friends with the caption “I, Robot is literally here.” It was intriguing as well as a bit eerie watching these bots respond to questions from journalists. There is no doubt that they have been brilliantly programmed and they provided practical answers to a variety of questions that included how they would assist with global and social issues of poverty and inequality.

The humanoids, Ameca and Sophia, both methodically stated that education is key in providing people with the training and resources they need to prosper, with Ameca pointing out this will lead to a more “equitable society.” It wasn’t surprising that a later question came from a reporter who asked the robots if they will supplant human jobs. Grace, a humanoid designed to assist with medical care, responded that she would be working alongside humans and not be replacing anyone. When asked if she was sure about that, Grace precisely replied, “Yes, I am sure,” which brought a round of laughter from the audience.

I believe that some of that laughter may have been nervous amusement since tech and media positions have been projected as jobs AI would overtake. In both industries, ChatGPT is already having a huge impact as many coders and software engineers could be laid off, and the content creation of technical writers and entry-level journalists could be handed over to AI on website publications.

The reason I immediately thought about the 2004 film “I, Robot” while observing the humanoids participating in the Geneva summit is due to the opening scenes in the movie that depict a fully integrated society of robots, NS-4s, and people in the year 2035 in Chicago. When Detective Del Spooner (Will Smith) prepares to go out one morning he is greeted by a FedEx delivery robot, whom Spooner rudely brushes off due to his extreme dislike of machines. As he walks through downtown, he glances over to a street where robots are picking up trash for a sanitation company named Canners. It is pretty obvious what the movie was implying here regarding jobs that would no longer be performed by people.

However, the most poignant line by Spooner is when he explains to Dr. Calvin (Bridget Moynahan), the expert in robotics psychiatry at the firm he is investigating, how he was rescued from an underwater car accident by a NS-4. Using its data analytics, the robot calculated that Spooner had a 45% chance of survival, while a young girl trapped in the car beside Spooner was only given an 11% estimation of living. “Eleven percent is more than enough,” Spooner distressingly recalled. “A human being would have known that.”

Spooner’s statement is indicative of the fact that humans are gifted with emotions, and humanoids, no matter how adeptly they are designed, can never have feelings as we do since we are sentient beings.

It truly amazes me that roboticists have been tirelessly working for decades to pattern machines after what the Lord God has already created. Scripture shows how God formed us with emotions because we are created in His image. God feels grief, anger, joy and compassion just as we do. Christ showed these emotions during His interactions with His disciples and the multitudes. For example, in John 11, which tells the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, verse 33 says that Jesus was “troubled” and verse 35, the shortest in the Bible, says that He “wept.” He was angry when He put the money changers out of the temple for disturbing worship, and He showed compassion when He did not allow the stoning of the woman caught in adultery. While our human nature has oftentimes let our “emotions get the best of us,” it would be imprudent to allow computerized logic to completely override the Godly genuineness of what our hearts can reveal when making critical decisions.

The year 2035 is not far off, and while our society may not completely mirror “I, Robot,” humanoids are going to eventually be incorporated into daily life in public service positions, corporations, educational institutions and much more. The essential question we must ask is what will be the cost of projection for more efficiency? How will displaced workers fit into the educational prognostications that Ameca and Sophia briefly mentioned? Having more efficiency won’t necessarily translate into a more equitable society. We’re going to have to go beyond bot reasoning to navigate this future terrain.