Tech Policy & Governance

ENTER: I recently heard that millennials are staying at home now, which is actually cutting down very slightly on CO2 emissions. But might VR technology impact people’s general health, in terms of indoor VR experiences replacing outdoor hiking, skiing, running, biking, climbing?

ENTER: How might virtual experiences impact climate issues favorably? I know you’ve been asked this before, but I’d like to get this from your own mouth.

JB: Well let me give you a new answer. I’ll give you an older answer if you’d like, but I’m really excited for this work we just did, in Palau.

A special consultant to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Cory Doctorow is also known for his compelling science fiction novels—including Homeland, Little Brother, and the recently released Walkaway. An activist and journalist, he co-edits the popular Boing Boing blog.

It was, of course, a publicity stunt. And it was a good one: Within days, media outlets across the world posted the announcement that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, during an economic conference in Riyadh, had declared Sophia—a humanoid robot created by Hanson Robotics and loaded with impressive AI—a citizen of their country.