Animals have legal rights, so why not AI? It’s not as crazy as it sounds

Gaps in the law mean there may be questions of responsibility if artificial intelligence causes harm, and questions of ownership if it creates something valuable, writes Jacob Turner

‘AI is unique because it is the first technology in history which can make decisions for itself.’ (AFP via Getty Images)

It sounds strange to talk about giving rights to robots. But this week the idea was debated in parliament.

Parliament has always been an innovator when it comes to rights, of course. 200 years ago, an MP proposed a law to protect animals. At first he was laughed out of Westminster. One of his opponents was concerned that people might be punished for “the boiling of lobsters, or the eating of oysters alive.”

Despite being thought an odd idea by many people at the time, the Ill-Treatment of Cattle Act was passed in 1822. It was one of the first pieces of animal rights legislation anywhere in the world. And now the government is going further, planning a new law to recognise Animal Sentience. Members of the House of Lords worried that it could prevent restaurants cooking lobsters – clearly a point of great concern to some politicians, both then and now.