A Legal Theory For Autonomous Artificial Agents
by Samir Chopra /
2011 / English / PDF
806.6 KB Download
“An extraordinarily good synthesis from an amazing range of
philosophical, legal, and technological sources . . .
the book will appeal to legal academics and students,
lawyers involved in e-commerce and cyberspace legal issues,
technologists, moral philosophers, and intelligent lay
readers interested in high tech issues, privacy, [and]
robotics.”
“An extraordinarily good synthesis from an amazing range of
philosophical, legal, and technological sources . . .
the book will appeal to legal academics and students,
lawyers involved in e-commerce and cyberspace legal issues,
technologists, moral philosophers, and intelligent lay
readers interested in high tech issues, privacy, [and]
robotics.”
—Kevin Ashley, University of Pittsburgh School of Law
—Kevin Ashley, University of Pittsburgh School of Law
As corporations and government agencies replace human
employees with online customer service and automated phone
systems, we become accustomed to doing business with nonhuman
agents. If artificial intelligence (AI) technology advances
as today’s leading researchers predict, these agents may soon
function with such limited human input that they appear to
act independently. When they achieve that level of autonomy,
what legal status should they have?
As corporations and government agencies replace human
employees with online customer service and automated phone
systems, we become accustomed to doing business with nonhuman
agents. If artificial intelligence (AI) technology advances
as today’s leading researchers predict, these agents may soon
function with such limited human input that they appear to
act independently. When they achieve that level of autonomy,
what legal status should they have?
Samir Chopra and Laurence F. White present a carefully
reasoned discussion of how existing philosophy and legal
theory can accommodate increasingly sophisticated AI
technology. Arguing for the legal personhood of an artificial
agent, the authors discuss what it means to say it has
“knowledge” and the ability to make a decision. They consider
key questions such as who must take responsibility for an
agent’s actions, whom the agent serves, and whether it could
face a conflict of interest.
Samir Chopra and Laurence F. White present a carefully
reasoned discussion of how existing philosophy and legal
theory can accommodate increasingly sophisticated AI
technology. Arguing for the legal personhood of an artificial
agent, the authors discuss what it means to say it has
“knowledge” and the ability to make a decision. They consider
key questions such as who must take responsibility for an
agent’s actions, whom the agent serves, and whether it could
face a conflict of interest.