Will robots ever be able to think independently?

My step dad and I where arguing about this. I say that its already been done and he says that it's impossible. I was telling him that people are afraid to give robots that kind of intelligence because we think they'll become smarter and more evolved than us to the point where we cannot understand there logic or they'll destroy us as humankind. He says it's impossible because robots are programed to do a function or multiple functions. Then he said how can a robot think independently if we program them to do one or multiple things. I told him that I don't know cause I'm not a scientist. Help me cause I know that it's been done and he can't understand.