What a time to be alive. As the world becomes more digitalized and modern, the use of artificial intelligence has become increasingly prevalent in many people's lives. In many cases, people are beginning to use AI robots to help with housework, to hire them as waitresses in cafes, and, most bizarrely, some are seeking AI to be their friends or lovers. But there’s a new AI innovation in development that truly stands out from the rest, which is the development of an AI pregnancy robot in China. Let’s dive deep into the topic together!
What is an AI pregnancy robot?
The pregnancy robot is an AI humanoid-shaped robot with an artificial womb that will help to carry a real baby for 9 months before giving birth to a real human baby. The robot will receive nutrients through a hose in its abdomen to aid in the baby's growth. It was conceptualized by Dr. Zhang Qifeng, the founder of Kaiwa Technology in Guangzhou, China. If everything goes according to plan, the robot prototype will make its debut and be available for sale beginning next year with a price expected to be around 100,000 yuan, or about $14,000. It is significantly less than a human surrogate but still expensive enough, as it is roughly half of Beijing’s average annual wage. While many questions are still unanswered at this time of development, Dr. Zhang, who is behind the development, stated that the artificial womb is already in a mature stage and just needs to be implemented in the robot’s abdomen to achieve pregnancy and allow the fetus to grow inside. He also stated that with this type of technology, there will be many questions and concerns about ethical and legal issues, but they have already held discussion forums with authorities in Guangdong Province and submitted proposed solutions while discussing policy and legislation.
According to Dr. Zhang, the artificial womb has already demonstrated significant results in animal experiments. According to the international journal "Nature Communications," researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia successfully allowed a premature lamb, which is equivalent to 23 weeks of pregnancy in humans, back in 2017. Dr. Zhang uses this vision to guide the development of the AI pregnancy robot, which is designed for humans rather than animals.
Why does it matter?
The reason behind the development is that some people don’t want to be pregnant but still want a child. So this innovation is hoped to help with that. The robot's development also aims to prepare for a shrinking workforce, as China has recently become a super-aged society. In recent years, it has seen a drop in birth rates as economic concerns and shifting social attitudes encourage women to have children later than ever before.
The push aims to prepare for a shrinking workforce as China becomes a super-aged society. In recent years, it has faced a flagging birth rate, as economic concerns and changing social attitudes push women to have children later than ever, or in some cases, they don’t want to have children at all. The country’s infertility has also risen. Infertility has also risen, to 18 percent in 2020 from 12 percent in 2007, according to a report published by the medical journal The Lancet, with one out of every 5.6 couples of childbearing age facing difficulties conceiving. Additionally, surrogacy is also illegal in China, but Zhang hopes to work around the ban with robots.
What are people’s reactions to this?
Surprisingly, people are quite positive about the development. The news made waves on Weibo, one of the country's most popular social media platforms, and has recently become a trending topic. Many users were intrigued by the technological possibilities, stating that the innovation could help women become more confident in marrying without being afraid of the 9-month pregnancy and the prospect of giving birth. Many say they would buy them right away if they had the money. It provides "hope" to women who have infertility issues and have wanted children for a long time. However, while the majority of people are positive about it, some have expressed concerns about the technology's unproven approach, particularly given the high price at which the robot will be sold. Some also criticized that the use of a robot is something cruel for the fetus, as there will be no connection to a mother, and it violates human ethics. Some experts weighed in, stating that pregnancy is an extremely complex and delicate process, so there will still be many health and ethical risks, even if it is performed by a robot.
More unique AI innovations are coming
If you think AI innovation is strange, wait until you hear about some of the world's most unique AI innovations. Despite China's AI pregnancy robot, many other countries around the world are developing their own unique developments, such as an AI human washing machine that can clean and dry people's bodies in 15 minutes, an AI pet robot with personalities, an AI interviewer to help select the best candidate for a job position, and even an AI robot with human senses and sensory abilities. Don't be surprised if our world becomes heavily integrated with AI in the future, and we see more unique and weird innovations than ever before.
Conclusion
The pregnancy robot story demonstrates that extraordinary claims necessitate extraordinary proof. What started as a fabricated profile and a few manipulated images quickly became international "news" because it appealed to our fascination with futuristic technology and China's appetite for bold experiments. The debunking demonstrated how thin the line between fact and fiction can be in today's media environment. Meanwhile, the real science of artificial wombs is quietly progressing, with the goal of saving premature infants rather than creating spectacle. This time around, the gap between viral hype and sober reality was quite wide, but there is nothing wrong with fantasizing about a future with pregnancy robots. After all, the next breakthrough could sound just as ridiculous, but it could also be true! So, while we should definitely fact-check viral claims because the genie never goes back in the bottle, humans excel at creating things that do not yet exist.
