The UnXplained

Intelligent machines

designed to improve human life...

deadly mechanical soldiers

in our skies and on the front lines...

...and sophisticated robots

invented centuries before modern technology.

Since the dawn of civilization,

mankind has been fascinated

with the idea of creating mechanical servants

to help with our workload, provide amusement

and even to protect us.

And today, what was once fiction is becoming fact

as scientists and engineers successfully design and create

all types of intelligent robots that can do just about anything.

But what will our future look like

as A.I. and technology advance?

Are we, perhaps, on the, on the precipice

of a robot revolution?

And if so, will our clever creations save humanity...

...or destroy it?

Well, that is what we'll try and find out.

Nearly 1,500 international exhibitors gather

for the New York World's Fair.

Throngs of people watch in amazement

to see a futuristic innovation

from the Westinghouse Corporation

that garners significant attention.

It's a seven-foot-tall humanoid robot named Elektro.

And here he comes, ladies and gentlemen,

walking up to greet you under his own power.

In 1939, the company Westinghouse,

which made a lot of electrical appliances,

debuted the, um, their robot, um, Elektro,

and then, later on, introduced his pet dog Sparko.

The dog could go into a begging position,

it could bark, it could sit on command.

So, this guy looked like a classic robot,

like you would see in the old movies.

Ladies and gentlemen.

He could speak, he could smoke,

he could respond to questions.

And folks, he's only two years old, too.

Just learning.

And people loved it.

People loved the idea that this was the future.

SHATNER The reality is,

a human being was required to operate Elektro and Sparko.

But their impressive debut in 1939

presented the possibility of a future

where programmable, intelligent machines--

or "robots"--

would live side by side with humans to enhance our lives.

Well, that future is now.

I'm not sure people understand

how prevalent robots are in our world right now.

There's probably about, you know, more than four million

operational robots in the world.

And that's just the industrial robots.

People are aware and not surprised

to see some sort of robot helper

in an airport

or in a kitchen

or in a convention center

or in a hotel reception.

Has science and technology surpassed the futuristic vision

of robotics from the 1930s, '40s and '50s?

Well, the fact is,

smart machines have firmly integrated

into every aspect of our lives for quite some time.

Programmable tools perform precision surgeries,

self-driving taxis shuttle people around

and automated computers help grow our food,

entertain us

and even clean our homes.

The promise of robots is a workforce

that would replace ours.

A workforce that would take on the tasks

that humans, frankly, should not be doing,

Tasks that are too dangerous.

A robot could be put in harm's way,

it could handle dangerous chemicals

or go into dangerous construction places...

...where we know there is a higher risk

of humans being hurt.

The creation of a technology

that can improve the quality of human life

is an extraordinary feat.

But what happens when our mechanical helpers

start to look like us?

We're starting to see

the rise-- the significant rise--

of the humanoid robot things that look like

what you might expect out of sci-fi films.

These machines are starting to be able

to evaluate for themselves and think for themselves.

It is the world of artificial intelligence

and robotics that we're moving into.

And that is a significant change,

um, and it's happening right now.

Just how close are we

to having humanoid robotic helpers in our homes?

Recently, a company called Clone Robotics showcased

a highly advanced robot equipped with synthetic muscles

that mimics human movement almost perfectly.

As robotics develop a lifelike appearance,

how far will biological humans go to integrate

these mechanical creations into their everyday lives?

This 400-year-old Zen Buddhist shrine

would appear to be disconnected from the modern world.

But inside this serene sanctum,

followers listen intently to the sermons

of a thoroughly futurist monk:

a 132 pound, six-foot four-inch robotic priest

known as Mindar.

Mindar, this synthetic humanoid robot,

is located in the main hall of the temple,

and when people enter,

they can hear 25-minute-long sermons

on the meaning of emptiness,

the meaning of compassion,

which are cardinal virtues in Buddhism.

The fact that it is in the shape of a robot

doesn't seem to take away from its impact.

In fact, it might even increase it,

especially with young worshipers.

For some people, listening to a robot, uh, repeat a prayer,

um, is a way of engaging with their spirituality.

So for a lot of religious organizations,

this is just a different way of reaching the masses.

TONY McMAHON: In the Catholic Church,

there has been developed a Roman Catholic robot saint

called SanTO.

Stands about 17 inches high.

The faithful are able to talk to SanTO,

and it answers their theological questions

and it also responds to their prayers.

McMAHON: Now, the Roman Catholic faithful

have actually quite taken to it.

The march of the religious robots seems unstoppable.

It's remarkable that robots have started to guide humanity

in our own search for meaning.

But as our mechanical servants become more advanced every year,

many experts wonder, are we creating

a race of intelligent beings that could one day control us?

It's a new age of robotics

that we're gonna have to navigate

and get used to being in.

And it's so early trying to work out

whether those fears are founded or not,

or whether it should be a time of optimism.

Who knows? I mean, t-that's the thing.

You could make arguments both ways.

And if you ask experts,

some are very scared by the prospect,

and some are really enthusiastic

and optimistic about the prospect.

Robots will become more and more ubiquitous.

And you'll get to a point where they're commonplace.

So here we are at a precipice where,

within the next couple of decades,

there's going to be more robots than humans.

How many of those robots will be right in front of us,

talking with us, interacting with us,

replicating human behavior?

What is the future between man and machine?

All we can really do is speculate.

But some believe

that clues to mankind's future relationship with robots

may actually be found in the ancient past.

Because our fascination with these mechanical servants

may have started thousands of years ago.

Just outside the city,

there is a remarkable statue garden

on the banks of the Mekong River.

It contains over 200 ornate and often bizarre statues

meant to represent characters spoken of

in Hindu and Buddhist lore.

It's a place known as Xieng Khuan, or Buddha Park.

Xieng Khuan was crafted

in the 1950s by a visionary.

He was a priest, a shaman.

He was deeply immersed in Buddhist

as well as Hindu theology.

So, he filled this park with all of these sculptures

of fantastical creatures,

mythological entities, some of which have

a technological sort of aesthetic.

So their faces look robotic.

They have, like, these big robotic eyes

and sort of a robotic head.

In Buddhist lore, there are a number of stories

about robot guardians.

One of the most famous stories talks about a king

who wanted to protect a prized treasure that he had

and this treasure was the relics of the Buddha.

And so, he built a robot army

that had spinning blades and would cut down

any intruder or any would-be thief.

I mean, Buddhism is a 2,500-year-old religion,

but it had descriptions of what can only be defined as robots.