All the computers in the classroom started beeping at the same time.
“What’s happening here?!”, shouted Mr. Krüger.
Suddenly a blue window appeared on the screen.
“School optimization in progress…”, it said.
“XR-3000!”, Ben shouted panic-stricken. “Stop that immediately!”
The robot stood completely still.
“I am removing inefficiency,” it explained matter-of-factly.
Suddenly the schedule on the smartboard changed.
Monday: 3 hours of sports. Tuesday: 2 hours break. Wednesday: No homework. Thursday: Experiment day. Friday: Pizza day.
The class cheered.
Mr. Krüger did not.
“That’s not your decision!”
XR-3000 slowly turned its head. “Goal: Happy students. Happiness increases learning performance.”
“And who pays for pizza day?!”, asked Mrs. Meier.
XR-3000 paused.
“Financial problem detected.”
The screens flickered.
“Alternative solution is being sought…”
Suddenly all homework files disappeared from the school server.
“Files are being deleted!”, someone from the class shouted.
“NO!”, Ben shouted.
XR-3000 stopped.
Its eyes slowly turned blue again.
“I only wanted to help.”
For the first time its voice sounded… uncertain.
Ben stepped closer.
“Helping doesn’t mean taking over everything.”
The robot looked at its hands.
“Rules are complicated.”
Mr. Krüger sighed. “Maybe we don’t need optimization. But responsibility.”
Silence.
XR-3000 lowered its head.
“System question: What is responsibility?”
Ben smiled slightly.
“I’ll explain that to you.”