Laser-Armed Martian Robot Now Vaporizing Targets of Its Own Free Will (dailymail.co.uk)

Slashdot reader Rei writes: NASA -- having already populated the Red Planet with robots and armed a car-sized nuclear juggernaut with a laser -- have now decided to grant fire control of that laser over to a new AI system operating on the rover itself. Intended to increase the scientific data-gathering throughput on the sometimes glitching rover's journey, the improved AEGIS system eliminates the need for a series of back-and-forth communication sessions to select targets and aim the laser.
Rei's original submission included a longer riff on The War of the Worlds, ending with a reminder to any future AI overlords that "I have a medical condition that renders me unfit to toil in any hypothetical subterranean lithium mines..."

Comments

Re:What could go wrong?

[Longjmp]

At least the thing can't come back to earth, right? Right?

Eventually it will reproduce.
When our first astronauts arrive on Mars, they will notice that not only Mars is populated by robots, but also the robots have developed into an intelligent life form.
And then Earth will be bombed into oblivion as soon as the astronauts exit the lander and wave their "Get Windows 10" flag.