https://www.reuters.com/article/us-science-robots-sex-idUSKBN19P2M6
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-40428976
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/20...s-art-love-doll-maker-seeks-shed-seedy-image/
In a report on the growing market in sex robots, the Foundation for Responsible Robotics said rapidly advancing technologies have already led to the creation of "android love dolls" capable of performing 50 automated sexual positions.
The report looked at some of the most contentious issues, asking academics, members of the public and the sex industry for their views on whether, for example, sex robots might be helpful in reducing sexual crimes.
It found "major disagreement" on this question, with some arguing that having sex with a robot would reduce attackers' desires to harm fellow humans, and others arguing that allowing people to live out their darkest fantasies with robots would have a pernicious effect on societal norms.
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-40428976
The report, Our Sexual Future With Robots, was written to focus attention on an issue barely discussed at the moment, he said. The report acknowledged that finding out how many people actually owned such robots was difficult because the companies that made them did not release the numbers. But, said Prof Sharkey, it was time society woke up to a possible future where humans and robots had sex.
The report considers a few options for how such robots could be employed as:
- robot "prostitutes", working in brothels
- sexual companions for the lonely or the elderly
- a new means of "sexual healing"
- a sexual therapy tool for rapists or paedophiles
Sex dolls that resemble children do exist, and a court in Canada is currently determining whether owning one is illegal. Newfoundland resident Kenneth Harrison ordered a doll from a Japanese business called Harumi Designs. The company is on a Canadian watch-list, and the doll was intercepted at the airport. Mr Harrison was charged with possessing child pornography but has pleaded not guilty.
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/20...s-art-love-doll-maker-seeks-shed-seedy-image/
Japans oldest love doll manufacturer wants to strip the sex toys of their seedy image and encourage people to see them as works of art instead.
But Orient Industry has also come under fire for producing a range of dolls that resemble children. The childlike dolls stand just 136 cm tall, and are pictured wearing school gym gear on the companys website.
In every country there are incidents where elementary school or junior high school children are sexually abused, and Japan is no different, said Oguchi. Some people are sexually attracted only to them. We once had a customer who came in and all of a sudden he told us that he was only sexually attracted to children.
Of course if you did anything to harm real children then you would be arrested. There would be real victims. So some people want to buy our products to use as an outlet. I think, in some ways, it can act as a deterrent.