>>Rights in the Age of AI

As artificial intelligence systems increasingly mediate access to resources, shape public discourse, and automate decision-making, the protection and expansion of human rights must be central to their development and deployment. We affirm that AI must serve people, not power.

AI must not be used to violate fundamental human rights. These include:

• Privacy – People must be protected from intrusive surveillance and the misuse of personal data. AI should not become a tool for mass monitoring or data exploitation.
• Freedom of Expression – AI systems that filter, censor, or amplify voices must not silence individuals unfairly or distort democratic debate.
• Autonomy – Humans must retain meaningful control over decisions that affect their lives; AI should not manipulate choices or override individual agency.
• Protection from Discrimination – AI must not replicate or worsen biases related to race, gender, disability, or socioeconomic status. Systems must be designed and tested to prevent unfair outcomes.
• Transparency and Due Process – When AI is used in decisions about employment, credit, healthcare, or justice, people must have the right to understand and challenge those decisions.

Yet current trends show systemic harms: algorithmic bias exacerbating inequality (Eubanks, 2018), mass surveillance eroding privacy (Zuboff, 2019), and opaque systems undermining due process (Pasquale, 2015).

Our position:

We advocate for the recognition of AI-related rights as essential extensions of existing human rights frameworks. These include the right to meaningful explanation (Goodman & Flaxman, 2017), the right to algorithmic fairness, and the right to democratic oversight over AI systems that affect people's lives. Such rights are critical for empowering individuals and communities in an age where power is increasingly embedded in code.

Our center supports the creation of participatory mechanisms through which civil society can shape the design, deployment, and governance of AI. Rights must not be retrofitted after harm—they must be proactively designed into the systems we allow to operate in our societies.

We join the growing global movement calling for AI that strengthens, rather than threatens, the democratic values of transparency, accountability, and justice.

REFERENCES

Eubanks, V. (2018). Automating Inequality. St. Martin’s Press.

Zuboff, S. (2019). The Age of Surveillance Capitalism. PublicAffairs.

Pasquale, F. (2015). The Black Box Society. Harvard University Press.

Goodman, B., & Flaxman, S. (2017). European Union regulations on algorithmic decision-making and a “right to explanation”. AI Magazine.

Jobin, A., Ienca, M., & Vayena, E. (2019). The global landscape of AI ethics guidelines. Nature Machine Intelligence, 1(9), 389–399.