The line between systems that require moral consideration and those that don't may be more complex than simply the presence of consciousness, especially as high-functioning robots with language abilities don't necessarily require consciousness.
The future holds the possibility of highly functioning robots that use language without consciousness, bringing the ethical question of what rights these robots should have.
The podcast host raises the question of whether objects have moral status, and if so, does it matter how we treat them. He uses the example of a cup to explain how the act of mistreating an object is not bad for the object itself but can be bad for other reasons.
The line between systems we consider morally accountable comes down to consciousness, but does this apply to AI? Right discusses the demonstration of consciousness in AI and how it would affect the way we treat them.