The coming sex robot revolution is going to empower paedophiles and rapists, experts have warned.
The creation of lifelike androids made only to have sex - which is already happening - could have huge dangers and help encourage all kinds of sexual abuse, a new report warns.
Experts have warned that the compliant robots, built only to service their owners, could encourage objectification, abuse, rape and paedophilia.
Inanimate child sex dolls had already been manufactured and exported from Japan by a self-confessed paedophile, Prof Sharkey revealed.
They were not illegal in the US, but a consignment of the dolls had been seized in Canada, which has strict laws on representing children as sex objects.
Experts have now called for the UK and other countries to ban such child sex robots from being imported.
One sex robot, Roxxxy Gold, made by the US company TrueCompanion, came with a choice of personalities including shy and reserved "Frigid Farrah" and adventurous "Wild Wendy".
A robot pre-programmed to resist sexual advances was effectively a rape victim, said Prof Sharkey.
"Some say it's better to rape a robot than a person, but others think it would encourage rape," he added.
Prof Sharkey wanted to see the government take pre-emptive action to stop paedophile sex robots entering the UK.
"I would say there should be an import ban on those," he said.
Comment: Read this article for a broader analysis of the general problem of which this story is but a part.