Five questions to ask before an AI companion or home robot comes into your home
Until certified products reach the shelves, these five questions, drawn from the Humasure Directives, help you judge any AI product or robot.
Home robots, AI companions and AI agents that act for you are arriving fast. Most of them are useful. Before one moves in, five questions will tell you a lot about whether you stay in charge.
1. How do I stop it, and does that work without Wi-Fi?
Look for a physical stop on robots and a one-tap stop in apps. Ask whether it works offline. (Directive 1)
2. What can it do without asking me?
A trustworthy product publishes a clear list of what it does on its own. Spending money, messaging people, sharing your data or unlocking doors should always need your OK. (Directive 2)
3. Who else can see through it?
Some home robots can be operated or watched remotely by company staff. You should know when, why, and be asked each time. Look for a light that shows when cameras or microphones are on. (Directive 5)
4. Until when will it get security updates?
A connected device without updates becomes easier to hijack every year. The end date of support should be stated before you buy. (Directive 6)
5. What happens if the company shuts down?
Ask what keeps working without the company’s servers, and whether you can take your data out. A product should fall back to a safe state, not a dead one. (Directive 10)
When Humasure-certified products arrive, their Trust Label will answer all five on one page, in the same order for every product.
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