Robotics and AI Open Letter to the European Commission

Dear Colleagues,

I am an HDR Lecturer in Law at the University of Artois (France), and I published a book entitled “Treaty of Law and Ethics of Civil Robotics” in early 2017 (1232 pages). I am also a member of the CNRS Ethics Committee (COMETS).

The European Parliament voted in February 2017 to adopt a Resolution proposing the adoption of the legal personality of robots – which could then be considered as electronic persons – as a possible remedy to the question of civil liability in case of damage caused by a robot (§ 59, f, to read under my signature, below).

However, the European Commission is now drafting a first communication on their strategy on AI and Robotics which could include a legal personality for autonomous robots, in view of new legislation on AI/Robotics for the EU.

I wrote an open letter on the model of Elon Musk’s to fight against this drift. The letter will be sent to the European Commission to show that this creation of a legal “electronic person” is to be avoided. We already have more 100 renowned signatories. The Robotics Open Letter to the European Commission is waiting for yours!

Here is the website: http://www.robotics-openletter.eu/

Do not worry if your name does not appear right away (moderation).

Thanking you in advance,

Best regards,

Nathalie NEVEJANS
nathalienevejans@yahoo.fr

Civil Law Rules of Robotics paragraph 59 f): “Creating a specific legal status for robots in the long run, so that at least the most sophisticated autonomous robots could be established as having the status of electronic persons responsible for making good any damage they may cause, and possibly applying electronic personality to cases where robots make autonomous decisions or otherwise interact with third parties independently”