Corcos on How Some SF Presents AI's Claim to the Right to Life and Self-Determination @lpcprof

Christine A. Corcos, Louisiana State University Law Center, is publishing More Human Than Human: How Some SF Presents AI's Claims to the Right to Life and Self-Determination in the Oxford Journal of Socio-Economic Studies, Hilary Term 2017. Here is the abstract.

If even the least self-aware human being has the right to life, simply because it exists, then could AI at some point also claim that right? Or can human-created AI, simply because it is human-created, simply never legitimately put forward such a right? The idea that human beings, because they are human, create and become the norm for such decisions is one that it is difficult to overcome, but it is one that philosophers, lawyers, and artists wrestle with. It is also one that we see depicted in many science fiction films and television series. Thus, who defines what personhood is becomes an important question. What happens if AI develops sentience, and emotions? What happens if AI develops personhood? We are only now beginning to consider whether such creations, having equivalent or greater intelligence and abilities than their creators, should have the same, or qualified liberties and privileges. If we do consider that question, what test should we apply to determine whether these artificial beings should have such rights? Some legal regimes, such as the European Union, are already beginning to take such questions seriously.

Download a draft of the essay at the link.