I don't want to forego a stimulating intelectual discourse, but isn't it obvious?<p>Replace 'autonomous machine' with 'child' and it is clear a parent is responsible. For autonomous machines these are the owners. Machines may be autonomous, but if a real person is liable, then I am sure there will be plenty of checks and tests done to prevent any disasters.<p>In fact, the results of the accounting scandals not so long ago may be a good template. Investors were fully dependent on this autonomous, faceless, financial machine to churn out profits. That blew up in their face and they had no-one to blame. One result was the enactment of Sarbanes-Oxley which set, amongst other things, criminal penalties on individuals.<p>That is good motivation: accountability.
Software defects kill people on an infrequent but fairly regular basis. Legal precedent and licensing agreements suggest that this is the software user's fault, not the manufacturer's.<p>So I assume we'll carry on with this preposterous state of affairs and just extend it to software-in-machines killing people autonomously, 'cause a defect in that <i>still</i> wouldn't be the manufacturer's fault, right?
I don't know, but expect to see Hofstadter and Searle debate by proxy in a courtroom, because Searle's Chinese Room argument is exactly the sort of thing you could put over on a typical jury.
This question exists because humans <i>demand</i> a cause for each effect, and a "responsible party" for every tragedy. Sometimes, things are just "accidents."<p>A colleague of my dad's tripped and fell while walking down a set of <i>three</i> stairs, hit his head, and died. It was nobody's fault -- it was just bad luck.
The autonomous machine should be brought to court and be allowed to defend itself before any judgement is passed. They should be allowed access to legal aid even a pro deo counsel.<p>It is not impossible actually for a legal system - that over time has passed judgement to witches, dogs donkeys, used torture to extract confessions and in some parts of the world demands its high priests to wear funny clothes and wigs - to be modified to suit the new circumstances.<p>In the meantime if you developing software for automating trains, aircraft or heavy construction machinery get plenty of Professional Idemnity Insurance. If you developing software for drones, missiles or nukes don't worry, there will be nobody alive to sue you if something goes wrong!