Artificial Intelligence as Global Commons and the 'International Law Supremacy' Principle

Abstract

The current paper analyzes the issue of Artificial Intelligence—AI—focusing on Artificial General Intelligence—AGI—and Artificial Super Intelligence—ASI—from the perspective of international law. It begins with the acknowledgment of the fact that AI poses historically unique challenges on the basis of its ontological characteristics and mainly of the emerging autonomy. Its autonomy bears the potential of leading to actual personhood—or raising AI entities to the status of “being”—thus necessitating the attribution of legal personhood too. Such a situation would be groundbreaking for all legal systems as well as for the way we comprehend various conducts, terms and legal relationships. In this framework, of the ecumenical challenges that AI poses, the article argues in favor of a common, international response, through the international law supremacy principle. In addition to that, the article makes the argument for the regulation of AI entities that lie at an intermediate technological phase, meaning for those which have surpassed the level of “res”, without constituting fully autonomous “beings” yet and thus raising the issue of the attribution of legal personhood, that the regulatory framework of global commons could be adopted, both for the entities themselves, as well as for their creations.

Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Autonomy, Global Commons, International Law, Legal Personhood