Black Mirror explores chilling brain implant for kids

There are countless ways technology can improve our daily lives – but, when it comes to parenting, it may be best to err on the side of caution.

A chilling new trailer for the Netflix hit Black Mirror taps into the worries known by every parent; in just an instant, a child can disappear from sight.

The new season is set to explore the desperate move of a mother who, after a scare at the playground, decides to get her daughter fitted with a brain implant.

But, if the previous seasons are any indication, the device will bring unintended consequences.

A chilling new trailer for the Netflix hit Black Mirror taps into the worries known by every parent; in just an instant, a child can disappear from sight. The new season is set to explore the desperate move of a mother who decides to get her daughter fitted with a brain implant

In the video, a worried mother can be seen watching as a gloved professional uses a massive needle to inject something into her daughter’s head.

‘It’s completely safe,’ a woman says in the background, in an unsettling reassurance that suggests the opposite.

The 55-second ‘Arkangel’ trailer offers little detail on the function of the device itself, or the company responsible for implanting it.

It does, however, include what could turn out to be a warning: ‘The key to good parenting is control.’

The episode will be directed by Jodie Foster, and will roll out with the fourth season of Black Mirror, which is expected to come out before the end of this year.

Netflix, however, has yet to confirm a release date.

The 55-second ‘Arkangel’ trailer offers little detail on the function of the device itself, or the company responsible for implanting it in the child’s head. The episode will be directed by Jodie Foster

Black Mirror has risen to popularity over the last few years as it addresses the growing impact of technology and artificial intelligence on society.

These scenarios often begin well-intended; robo-bees, for example, could continue to pollinate long after their living predecessors have been wiped out, or androids could embody the personality of a loved one who’s passed away, to ease the healing process.

But, as the show emphasizes, what may seem a good idea doesn’t always translate well to real life.

SCIENTISTS CALL FOR BAN ON KILLER ROBOTS

AI experts recently put together a seven-minute film that depicts a terrifying future where tiny killer drones are programmed to carry out mass killings.

Made by an advocacy group called Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, the footage shows palm-sized drones, armed with explosives, finding and attacking people without human supervision.

These tiny drones can kill with ruthless efficiency and campaigners warn a preemptive ban on the technology is needed to stop a new era of horrific mass destruction.

More than 100 nations are part of the International Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons that recently debated ban on so called ‘killer robots’ in Geneva.

A leading AI scientists from the University of California in Berkeley, Stuart Russell, will be part of the team that show the film at the International Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons.

‘Pursuing the development of lethal autonomous weapons would drastically reduce international, national, local, and personal security,’ Dr Russell said, according to the Guardian.

‘The technology illustrated in the film is simply an integration of existing capabilities’, he said.

With technology that once seemed only a fixture of science-fiction now in many ways a part of daily life, the show touches on the growing fears of rogue AI and a machine takeover.

AI experts continue to go back and forth on the topic, with some claiming the benefits will far outweigh the consequences – while others warn failure to oversee its growth could pose dire threats to humanity.

Elon Musk, for example, recently warned that technology, if left unchecked, is a ‘fundamental risk to the existence of human civilization.’

Google exec Ray Kurzweil, on the other hand, has preached a more optimistic view, arguing in a recent interview that ‘we have a moral imperative to continue progress in these technologies,’ though doing so will likely lead to some ‘difficult episodes.’

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