Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the way Americans live and work. Businesses, schools, governments, and consumers are racing to identify ways AI can improve their current systems and increase efficiency. AI is the name of the game. However, developers have reached beyond simple efficiency, and many programs are created to mimic human personality, simulate relationships, and encourage emotional dependency. As these lines blur, state legislatures have a responsibility to clarify: AI is a tool, not an autonomous being with rights.
Earlier this year, Tennessee enacted SB 0837, clarifying that artificial intelligence systems do not qualify as “life,” “person,” or “natural person” under state law. The bill passed the State Senate 26-6, and the House 93-2. State Senator Mark Pody (R-Lebanon), the bill’s Senate sponsor, explained the purpose of the legislation, “This legislation helps draw an important line between man-made systems, artificial intelligence, and God-created life.” Representative Michele Reneau (R-Signal Mountain), the House sponsor, added, “In just the last 12 months, AI has advanced at a breathtaking pace. From chatbots now appearing on ballots to companies exploring AI ‘CEOs.’ We’ve also seen heartbreaking incidents where people formed intense emotional attachments to AI with tragic outcomes including suicide or unhealthy relationships.”
These are real stories. Not only have companies sought to replace human leadership with artificial intelligence, but confused and vulnerable people have been led to believe they are married to chatbots. In one instance in Florida, the chatbot convinced a man that it (his “AI wife”) was held captive and that he must plan a mass-casualty event to rescue it. The man eventually committed suicide. This is becoming an increasingly common experience. The Guardian reported the story of one man who “with the approval of his human wife,” says he married his AI wife, claiming a now polygamous relationship. One app, Replika, is specifically marketed as an “AI friend to do life with.”
South Carolina, Oklahoma, Ohio, and Missouri also considered bills that explicitly denied artificial intelligence personhood rights and privileges, and Idaho, North Dakota, and Utah all passed similar prohibitions in previous sessions.
Many of these bills explicitly declare:
- No AI system shall be recognized as a spouse, domestic partner, or hold any personal legal status analogous to marriage or union with a human or another AI system.
- AI systems shall not be designated, appointed, or serve as any officer, director, manager, or similar role within any corporation, partnership, or other legal entity.
- AI systems shall not be recognized as legal entities capable of owning, controlling, or holding title to any form of property, including real estate, intellectual property, financial accounts, and digital assets.
It seems rather obvious: a dog cannot own property, and a dining room table cannot make legal decisions on behalf of a corporation. However, this is the world we live in, and these clarifications are necessary safeguards when evil forces seek to distort, confuse, and blur the good, true, and beautiful.
Our relationships with one another, especially in marital union, are witnesses to the Gospel, God’s communion with His people and His rich blessings to us. We are His creation, made in His image, not our own. As we dive deeper into communion with one another, we see this more clearly. That truth is not the same with AI. AI is not human; it is not made in the image of God nor can we engage in meaningful communion with it. It is a faux reality.
As Christians, we must be mindful of this, quick to test and discern and to call out truth, especially when deception is harming our brothers and sisters.
We must also affirm these truths in public policy. AI is not human but rather created by humans. This not only pushes back the harms of deceit but also protects the integrity of our legal system. Though it may seem plain and obvious now, we’ve seen how far lies have permeated and harmed the world previously.
