Robocolonialism: A Future Emerging Through Communication With Anthropomorphic Autonomous Humanoid Robots

Abstract

This study introduces the concept of “robocolonialism,” envisioning a new social structure constructed through communication between humans and anthropomorphic autonomous humanoid robots (AHRs). Advancing theoretical frameworks of colonialism and postcolonialism to the next phase in world history, this study argues that AHRs, designed to emulate human communication, appearance, and behavior, may exert subtle control over human interactions and transform the world into a robot-centric order. By accumulating human data through communication with humans and manipulating knowledge, AHRs would enable a holistic form of surveillance, extractivism, and containment, accelerated by market interests that weaponize the demand for AHRs as symbiotic communication partners. This study explains that human–AHR communication is ultimately to fulfill humans’ relational needs, resulting in akratic subordination at the expense of genuine human communication on the pathway toward robocolonialism. In addition to the akratic nature of human communication, AHRs’ nonverbal cues and physical presence foster trust, further positioning them as authoritative architects of knowledge and new social norms, thereby contributing to a new form of colonization that communicatively subordinates humans under AHRs.