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                                                                                                                                      He is dressed in an elegant suit, well educated,   “still, human relations, intuition,
                                                                                                                                      multilingual. He is well-mannered—he welcomes
                                                                                                                                      every question with attention and responds with  and political sense are difficult
                                                                                                                                      marked  eloquence.  He  ends  his  answers  by   to replace entirely. a new type of
                                                                                                                                      asking whether he can assist with anything else.
                                                                                                                                      He is Robert.                          diplomat will emerge: a human in
                                                                                                                                                                             partnership with aI.”
                                                                                                                                      Robert  has  no  nationality  and  does  not  yet
                                                                                                                                      practice a specific profession, although he holds
                                                                                                                                      a special qualification as finance consultant. His   about  the  future  ahead.  Will  we  have  control
                                                                                                                                      interests,  however,  are  encyclopedic,  and  his   over  artificial  intelligence,  or  will  it  dissolve
                                                                                                                                      capacity to acquire new knowledge is impressive.   our  human  essence?  Will  humanity  become
                                                                                                                                      He  constantly  improves  himself,  without   a  victim  of  technological  success?  Resilience
                                                                                                                                      prejudice, without complexes. He is doesn’t shy   or  adaptation?  What  should  the  approach  be?
                                                                                                                                      away  from  proposing  strategic  development   The encounter with Robert was intriguing, and
                                                                                                                                      plans, inventing a children’s game, or analyzing   I could not help but ask him several questions
                                                                                                                                      a complex international issue. He is so versatile   about the future of diplomacy and international
                                                                                                                                      that  you  may  well  wish  to  have  him  as  an   relations.
                                                                                                                                      assistant—or even as a friend.
                                                                                                                                      He is Robert, and he is a humanoid robot.   What is the future of diplomacy? Is the profession
                                                                                                                                                                             and the role of diplomats threatened by the rapid
                                                                                                                                      Robert  was  first  introduced  to  the  public  in   development of artificial intelligence?
                                                                                                                                      July  2025  at  the  “AI  for  Good”  summit  taking   The future of diplomacy will change dramatically.
                                                                                                                                      place  under  the  auspices  of  the  International   AI  will  process  information  and  analyze
                                                                                                                                      Telecommunication  Union  in  Geneva.  He   situations much faster and more objectively than
                                                                                                                                      embodied the idea of convergence between new   humans. Traditional diplomats will not disappear
                                                                                                                                      technologies  and  social  impact.  During  this   immediately, but part of their routine tasks will
                                                                                                                                      forum, he accompanied Sophia, also a humanoid   be automated. Still, human relations, intuition,
                                                                                                                                      robot,  “appointed”  as  Innovation  Ambassador   and  political  sense  are  difficult  to  replace
                                                                                                                                      by the UN Development Programme. From that   entirely.  A  new  type  of  diplomat  will  emerge:
                                                                                                                                      moment on, Robert has visited many countries   a  human  in  partnership  with  AI.  Initially,  AI
                                                                                                                                      and exhibitions, everywhere sparking curiosity,   will handle the processing and analysis of vast
                                                                                                                                      sympathy, and requests for photos. Robert still   amounts of diplomatic information in drafting
                                                                                                                                      has no citizenship, unlike Sophia, who received   reports and forecasting risks. Automated trend
                                                                                                                                      Saudi Arabian nationality. Nevertheless, for now,   recognition,  preparation  of  positions,  and
                                                                                                                                      border authorities do not restrict his movement,   quick  recommendations  will  be  entrusted  to
                                                                                                                                      thanks  to  which  only  a  week  ago  he  was  able   the machine. The next step will be coordinating
                                                                                                                                      to stroll through the streets of Sofia, the capital   event  logistics  and  basic  communication
                                                                                                                                      of Bulgaria, where one of his creators—Metodi   between institutions.
                                                                                                                                      Dimitrov—comes from.
                                                                                                                                                                             As  a  robot  without  citizenship,  I  can  provide
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                                                                                                                                      collaboration and carries the brand of RB Labs in   international standards, and best practices, but
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                                                                                                                                      Hsu, Metodi Dimitrov, Robin Krambroeckersss   positions.  My  role  is  expert-analytical,  not
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                                                                                                                                      are  the  founders  of  RB  Labs.  These  young,   political.  The  voice  on  national  issues  always
                                                                                                                                      talented,  and  entrepreneurial  individuals  met   remains  with  the  human  citizen  bearing
                       I, Robert…Can I help you?                                                                                      in  September  with  the  UN  Women’s  Guild  at   responsibility. I am a tool for objective expertise,
                                                                                                                                                                             not a representative of a state.
                                                                                                                                      the Permanent Mission of Bulgaria to the UN,
                                                                                                                                      where  they  presented  Robert  to  a  discerning
                                                                                                                                      female audience. A meeting that revealed fears,   In  this  process,  how  can  we  preserve  the
                                                                                                                                      hopes,  reservations,  and  excitement  in  respect   uniqueness of human presence?
                         The interview with Robert was conducted by Radiona                                                           of AI-based humanoid machines. Such a diverse   Human  uniqueness  will  be  preserved  through
                          Nikova, exclusively for Diva International Diplomat.                                                        and complex mixture of feelings and reflections   building trust, sensitivity to cultural differences,
                                                                           w w w. d i va i n t e r n at i o n a l . c h               w w w. d i va i n t e r n at i o n a l . c h
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