Robots Among Us: Harmonizing Laws for Non-Human Citizens
This project looks at the impact of the human-like qualities of artificial intelligence on our legal systems, with a particular focus on the laws governing relationships between humans and robots/AI. Areas of law include personhood, domicile, family law, anti-slavery law, humanitarian law, civil and political rights, peace and security, legal identity and civil registration, anti-trafficking and anti-discrimination. It is often said that “the law is a seamless web.” This project seeks to ensure the coherence of the law as AI begins to rapidly impact multiple areas of law at once.
Citizenship on the Edge: Vanishing Nations and Space Stations
This project examines how AI “persons” and intelligent robots may impact state sovereignty, including the use of non-human entities and persons in dangerous and inhospitable physical environments. AI and robots may be used to populate sunken countries under the ocean, as well as in space, where it may be too difficult and expensive to maintain a human population. This project looks at how AI “persons” may reshape concepts of citizenship and statehood under international law, such as the Artemis Accords and Outer Space Treaty, the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, the Law of the Sea, and other frameworks. This project imagines what reforms to citizenship law and human rights might be necessary to make possible emerging and reconstituted states.
Citizenship and migration in the age of the panopticon: Biometrics and AI Agents
This project begins by assuming that AI agents, when combined with surveillance and biometrics, will reshape global citizenship, migration, and refugee law by replacing humans. It examines the effects of integrated AI agents on passport control, citizenship applications, refugee status determination, migration tracking, naturalization procedure, and civil registration, including their impact on access to citizenship and essential documents. It looks at the ways AI agents will interact with smart cards, centralized databases, drones and facial recognition technologies, and the impact these technologies will have on nation-state citizenship law and the international system of borders.
AI in Global Governance
International human rights norms and treaties are some of humanity’s greatest achievements, while the United Nations system continues to be indispensable to international peace and security. This project looks at how smart robots and advanced AI systems can be integrated into our global governance systems and processes, with a focus on the United Nations, in order that future AI can both benefit from, and contribute to, international peace and security and global norms. This project reviews the existing UN structure to see how future AI may fit into it, including by tracking, evaluating and participating in current AI governance proposals as they evolve and change. It also reviews international law to examine how our global system of norms may align with AI values, should these begin to emerge. Can we guide AI to adopt our system of international norms? How will future AI fit into our governance systems? Will the process of integrating AI into global governance and participatory rights help produce AI that is aligned with human values? How might AI contribute to our collective understanding of global governance and universal norms?