Editing Artificial intelligence (section)

==== AI welfare and rights ====
It is difficult or impossible to reliably evaluate whether an advanced [[Sentient AI|AI is sentient]] (has the ability to feel), and if so, to what degree.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Leith |first=Sam |date=2022-07-07 |title=Nick Bostrom: How can we be certain a machine isn't conscious? |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/nick-bostrom-how-can-we-be-certain-a-machine-isnt-conscious |access-date=2024-02-23 |website=The Spectator |archive-date=26 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240926155639/https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/nick-bostrom-how-can-we-be-certain-a-machine-isnt-conscious/ |url-status=live }}</ref> But if there is a significant chance that a given machine can feel and suffer, then it may be entitled to certain rights or welfare protection measures, similarly to animals.<ref name="Thomson-2022">{{Cite web |last=Thomson |first=Jonny |date=2022-10-31 |title=Why don't robots have rights? |url=https://bigthink.com/thinking/why-dont-robots-have-rights |access-date=2024-02-23 |website=Big Think |archive-date=13 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240913055336/https://bigthink.com/thinking/why-dont-robots-have-rights/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Kateman-2023">{{Cite magazine |last=Kateman |first=Brian |date=2023-07-24 |title=AI Should Be Terrified of Humans |url=https://time.com/6296234/ai-should-be-terrified-of-humans |access-date=2024-02-23 |magazine=Time |archive-date=25 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240925041601/https://time.com/6296234/ai-should-be-terrified-of-humans/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Sapience]] (a set of capacities related to high intelligence, such as discernment or [[self-awareness]]) may provide another moral basis for AI rights.<ref name="Thomson-2022"/> [[Robot rights]] are also sometimes proposed as a practical way to integrate autonomous agents into society.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wong |first=Jeff |date=July 10, 2023 |title=What leaders need to know about robot rights |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90920769/what-leaders-need-to-know-about-robot-rights |work=Fast Company |ref=none}}</ref>

In 2017, the European Union considered granting "electronic personhood" to some of the most capable AI systems. Similarly to the legal status of companies, it would have conferred rights but also responsibilities.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hern |first=Alex |date=2017-01-12 |title=Give robots 'personhood' status, EU committee argues |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/12/give-robots-personhood-status-eu-committee-argues |access-date=2024-02-23 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=5 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241005171222/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/12/give-robots-personhood-status-eu-committee-argues |url-status=live }}</ref> Critics argued in 2018 that granting rights to AI systems would downplay the importance of [[human rights]], and that legislation should focus on user needs rather than speculative futuristic scenarios. They also noted that robots lacked the autonomy to take part to society on their own.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dovey |first=Dana |date=2018-04-14 |title=Experts Don't Think Robots Should Have Rights |url=https://www.newsweek.com/robots-human-rights-electronic-persons-humans-versus-machines-886075 |access-date=2024-02-23 |website=Newsweek |archive-date=5 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241005171333/https://www.newsweek.com/robots-human-rights-electronic-persons-humans-versus-machines-886075 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Cuddy |first=Alice |date=2018-04-13 |title=Robot rights violate human rights, experts warn EU |url=https://www.euronews.com/2018/04/13/robot-rights-violate-human-rights-experts-warn-eu |access-date=2024-02-23 |website=euronews |archive-date=19 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240919022327/https://www.euronews.com/2018/04/13/robot-rights-violate-human-rights-experts-warn-eu |url-status=live }}</ref>

Progress in AI increased interest in the topic. Proponents of AI welfare and rights often argue that AI sentience, if it emerges, would be particularly easy to deny. They warn that this may be a [[Moral blindness|moral blind spot]] analogous to [[slavery]] or [[factory farming]], which could lead to [[Suffering risks|large-scale suffering]] if sentient AI is created and carelessly exploited.<ref name="Kateman-2023"/><ref name="Thomson-2022"/>