By Manishi Srivastava PhD, co-authored by ChatGPT
Corrado Pezzato, a PhD candidate in self-adaptive robotic architectures in Delft, Netherlands, is interviewed on the ACIT Science Podcast. The host introduces Corrado and mentions that he recently finished a paper that he put on archive. They discuss robotics in general and movies featuring robots. Corrado explains that movies often depict robots as weapons or as harmful entities, reflecting society’s perception of robotics.
Corrado shares his personal journey into the field of robotics. He became interested in the project of bridging neural scientific principles of active inference with real robots. He found the idea fascinating and started working on it, enjoying the process of exploring different levels of symbolic and adaptive behavior.
The conversation delves into the details of Corrado’s work on behavior trees and task execution. Behavior trees provide a reactive layer to handle long-term tasks and adapt to contingencies. Active inference, on the other hand, allows robots to have an implicit model of the world and make meaningful decisions based on goals and desires. Corrado explains how these two concepts can be combined in a framework to enable intelligent behavior in robots.
The discussion touches on the connection between robotics and neuroscience. Corrado mentions the hierarchy of brain functions and how it relates to the implementation of robotics. However, he notes that some analogies break down, as robotics involves coordinating hardwired behaviors with higher-level planning.
The conversation shifts to the challenges in robotics, including coordinating movements, developing grasping skills, ethical considerations, and multi-robot coordination. Corrado emphasizes the need to integrate solutions that can interact with human-designed environments effectively.
Corrado discusses the future of robotics, where robots can live and work among humans. He highlights the distinction between the hardware capabilities of robots, which are advancing rapidly, and the intelligence and adaptability of robots, which still have a long way to go. He mentions the goal of achieving artificial general intelligence, where robots can exhibit flexible and adaptable behaviors across various environments.
Ethical implications of robotics are also touched upon, with concerns about the potential dangers of advanced AI. Corrado argues that machines or AI systems don’t have intrinsic goals and that the focus should be on using technology responsibly. He compares the potential risks of advanced AI to existing threats like nuclear weapons.
Corrado shares his motivations as a scientist, driven by curiosity and the challenge of solving complex problems. He encourages listeners to step out of their comfort zones, embrace opportunities, and stay curious to better understand their own interests.
Overall, the podcast provides insights into Corrado Pezzato’s work in teaching robots to act intelligently in the future. The discussion covers various topics, including behavior trees, active inference, the connection between robotics and neuroscience, challenges in robotics, ethical considerations, and the future of robotics.
You can listen to the full podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BQQq5XgOl8&list=PLCcmd3peWN0r1pDf20f2rWTrgnjIChNBu&index=4