A robot became a citizen of Saudi Arabia, reportedly the first country to give citizenship rights to a machine. Named Sophia, the female robot could end up with more rights than Saudi women. She also dissed Tesla's Elon Musk.
The humanoid robot, created by Hong Kong's Hanson Robotics, was introduced during the Future Investment Initiative summit in Riyadh and was granted citizenship Wednesday, TechCrunch reported.
"I am very honored and proud for this unique distinction," the robot said, per the BBC News. "This is historical to be the first robot in the world to be recognized with a citizenship."
Entrepreneur.com said when CNBC's Andrew Sorkin mentioned to the robot that humans wanted to "prevent a bad future" with them, Sophia mocked Tesla creator Elon Musk, who warned earlier this year about the growth of artificial intelligence.
"You've been reading too much Elon Musk," Sophia said. "And watching too many Hollywood movies. Don't worry, if you're nice to me, I'll be nice to you. Treat me as a smart input output system."
Saudi Arabia has been trying to highlight reform in the kingdom in regards to women, such as ending its ban on women driving and allowing them to participate in the country's National Day, BBC News noted, a fact not lost on the country's critics who pointed out that Sophia is female.
The kingdom still faces criticism for archaic gender laws that require women to be accompanied by a male guardian, TechCrunch noted.
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