New publication - The regulation of sex robots: Gender and sexuality in the era of artificial intelligence
Carlotta Rigotti, postdoctoral researcher at eLaw, has just published her new monograph, The Regulation of Sex Robots: Gender and Sexuality in the Era of Artificial Intelligence.
Building on her PhD research and featuring a foreword by Professor Clare McGlynn, the book presents a new framework for regulating human-like machines designed for emotional and sexual engagement, often powered by AI. While sex robots currently occupy a niche in the adult entertainment and technology sectors, they raise profound and complex issues that extend far beyond current debates.
The prevailing narrative often frames them as either tools for societal liberation or as instruments of sexual commodification and user degradation. These polarized views mirror long-standing feminist discussions, leading to normative deadlock and overlooking diverse lived experiences.
The evolving legal landscape further complicates matters. Regulatory bodies, including the European Union, struggle to keep pace with these emerging technologies. Their tendency to assess innovations as products with hypothetical risks—through a detached, top-down approach—often fails to adequately address the intersectional dynamics of privilege and oppression inherent in these systems.
Carlotta’s book enriches this conversation by moving decisively beyond these binary narratives. It challenges the socio-legal construction of gender and sexuality, critiques regulatory inertia and morality policing, and advocates for a nuanced, context-aware approach to sex robot regulation.
The book can be purchased on the website of Routledge.