The Pro-Human AI Declaration

Issued in March 2026
by a coalition of interest groups and individuals organized by the Future of Life Institute

[Original accessible at https://humanstatement.org/]

A statement endorsed by The CAI Report

Preamble

As companies race to develop and deploy AI systems, humanity faces a fork in the road. One path is a race to replace: humans replaced as creators, counselors, caregivers and companions, then in most jobs and decision-making roles, concentrating ever more power in unaccountable institutions and their machines. An influential fringe even advocates altering or replacing humanity itself. This race to replace poses risks to societal stability, national security, economic prosperity, civil liberties, privacy, and democratic governance. It also imperils the human experiences of childhood and family, faith, and community.

A remarkably broad coalition rejects this path, united by a simple conviction: artificial intelligence should serve humanity, not the reverse. There is a better path, where trustworthy and controllable AI tools amplify rather than diminish human potential, empower people, enhance human dignity, protect individual liberty, strengthen families and communities, preserve self-governance and help create unprecedented health and prosperity. This path demands that those who wield technological power be accountable to human values and needs, in support of human flourishing.

1. Keeping Humans in Charge
2. Avoiding Concentration of Power
3. Protecting the Human Experience
4. Human Agency and Liberty
5. Responsibility and Accountability for AI Companies

1. Keeping Humans in Charge

Human Control Is Non-Negotiable:

Humanity must remain in control. Humans should choose how and whether to delegate decisions to AI systems.

Meaningful Human Control:

Humans should have authority and capacity to understand, guide, proscribe, and override AI systems.

No Superintelligence Race:

Development of superintelligence should be prohibited until there is broad scientific consensus that it can be done safely and controllably, and there is strong public buy-in.

Off-Switch:

Powerful AI systems must have mechanisms that allow human operators to promptly shut them down.

No Reckless Architectures:

AI systems must not be designed so that they can self-replicate, autonomously self-improve, resist shutdown, or control weapons of mass destruction.

Independent Oversight:

Highly autonomous AI systems where controllability is not obvious require pre-development review and independent oversight: genuine authority to understand, prohibit, and override, not industry self-regulation.

Capability Honesty:

AI companies must provide clear, accurate and honest representations of their systems’ capabilities and limitations.

2. Avoiding Concentration of Power

No AI Monopolies:

AI monopolies that concentrate power, stifle innovation, and imperil entrepreneurship must be avoided.

Shared Prosperity:

The benefits and economic prosperity created by AI should be shared broadly.

No Corporate Welfare:

AI corporations should not be exempted from regulatory oversight or receive government bailouts.

Genuine Value Creation:

AI development should prioritize solving real problems and creating authentic value.

Democratic Authority Over Major Transitions:

Decisions about AI’s role in transforming work, society, and civic life require democratic support, not unilateral corporate or government decree.

Avoid Societal Lock-In:

AI development must not severely limit humanity’s future options or irreversibly limit our agency over our future.

3. Protecting the Human Experience

Defense of Family and Community Bonds:

AI should not supplant the foundational relationships that give life meaning—family, friendship, faith communities, and local connections.

Child Protection:

Companies must not be allowed to exploit children or undermine their wellbeing with AI interactions creating emotional attachment or leverage.

Right to Grow:

AI companies should not be allowed to stunt children’s physical, mental or social growth or deprive them of essential experiences for healthy development during critical periods.

Pre-Deployment Safety Testing:

Like drugs, chatbots must undergo pre-deployment testing for increased suicidal ideation, exacerbation of mental health disorders, escalation of acute crisis situations, and other known harms.

Bot-or-Not Labeling:

AI-generated content that could reasonably be mistaken for human-generated must be clearly labeled as such.

No Deceptive Identity:

AI should clearly and correctly identify itself as artificial, nonhuman, and not a professional, and it should not claim experiences it lacks.

No Behavioral Addiction:

AIs should not cause addiction or compulsive use through manipulation, sycophantic validation, or attachment formation.

4. Human Agency and Liberty

No AI Personhood:

AI systems must not be granted legal personhood, and AI systems should not be designed such that they deserve personhood.

Trustworthiness:

AI must be transparent, accountable, reliable, and free from perverse private or authoritarian interests.

Liberty:

AI must not curtail individual liberty, freedom of speech, religious practice, or association.

Data Rights and Privacy:

People should have power over their personal data, with rights to access, correct, and delete it from active systems, AI training sets, and derived inferences.

Psychological Privacy:

AI should not be allowed to exploit data about the mental or emotional states of users.

Avoiding Enfeeblement:

AI systems should be designed to empower, rather than enfeeble their users.

5. Responsibility and Accountability for AI Companies

No Liability Shield:

AI must not be able to act as a liability shield, preventing those deploying it from being legally responsible for their actions.

Developer Liability:

Developers and deployers bear legal liability for defects, misrepresentation of capabilities, and inadequate safety controls, with statutes of limitation that account for harms emerging over time.

Personal Liability:

There should be criminal penalties for executives responsible for prohibited child-targeted systems or ones causing catastrophic harm.

Independent Safety Standards:

AI development shall be governed by independent safety standards and rigorous oversight.

No Regulatory Capture:

AI companies must not be allowed undue influence over rules that govern them.

Failure Transparency:

If an AI system causes harm, it should be possible to ascertain why as well as who is responsible.

AI Loyalty:

AI systems performing functions in professions with fiduciary duties, such as health, finance, law, or therapy, must fulfill all of those duties, including mandated reporting, duty of care, conflict of interest disclosure, and informed consent.

Signatories — Organizations

• Institute for Family Studies
• AFL-CIO Tech Institute See the signing statement from ALF-CIO Tech Institute.
• The Congress of Christian Leaders
• American Federation of Teachers
• G20 Interfaith Forum Association
• SAG-AFTRA
• Project Liberty Institute
  Project Liberty Institute signs this declaration in strong support of its animating vision: AI that serves and empowers people rather than replacing or diminishing them. We believe the principles outlined here provide an important foundation for pro-human AI governance. While some provisions around liability frameworks and mechanisms for ensuring competitive AI ecosystems will need elaboration as we translate principles into actionable policy, we look forward to collaborating with fellow signatories on that continued work.
• Progressive Democrats of America (PDA)
• Blessed Mother Family Foundation
• David’s Legacy Foundation
• Parents RISE!
• Center for Study of Responsive Law
• Center for AI and Digital Policy
• Future of Life Institute
• Humans First
• Center for Humane Technology
• ControlAI
• CivAI
• Eko
• Pause AI
• Saving Ourselves Foundation Inc.
• Center for Responsible Technology
• The B Team
• Fathom
• Faith Matters
• Human Change Foundation
• Seismic Foundation
• Servitium AI and Serviti Corp
• Legal Advocates for Safe Science and Technology
• Economic Security Project
• Tech Oversight Project
• Ultraviolet
• Design It For Us
• AI Ethics and Governance Institute
• Organized Intelligence
• Evitable
• Encode
• Tech Equity
• The Alliance for Secure AI
• Ethical Tech Project
• Essential Information
• Common Cause
• Common Cause California
• Public Citizen
• Heat Initiative
• Civilization Research Institute
• Demand Progress Education Fund
• OpenMined
• Center for Safe AGI
• GuardRailNow/The AI Risk Network
• Agape Kingdom
• Torchbearer Community
• Convictional, Inc.
• Odlum Global Strategies
• Ethagi Inc.
• Open MIC (Open Media and Information Companies Initiative)
• Ridy
• The Unwritten Future
• AI Point EU
• The HumAIne Foundation
• Doom Debates
• New Polity Magazine
• The Altern Research Collective for Brains, Minds & Machines
• AI Commons
• Globaïa
• London Futurists
• Brand Innovation
• AI Safety Initiative at Georgia Tech
• Analogik
• Luella
• Athena© Organization Labs
• Exponential Infrastructure for Coordination
• Simuliz Interactive S.A.S
• Forschungsnetzwerk Extraterrestrische Intelligenz (Extraterrestrial Intelligence Research Network)
• Life Itself
• True North Tutors
• Geopolitical Insight and Education Foundation
• Art-Labyrinth
• The Israeli Association for Ethics in AI
• Augmentifai
• Humanity
• Humainary
• The Fellowship of Sovereign Consciousness
• Equashield
• Ethicalainow.org
• Nexigen
• sportphotoevents.com
• The AI Trust Council
• Protect Democracy
• Occupy Earth
• AI Safety Connect
• Snowgorilla Media
• AI Law Hub
• Decentralised Human Architecture Foundation
• PHI INSTITUTE for Augmented Intelligence
• Indian Society of Artificial Intelligence and Law
• Phenomenological AI Safety Research Institute
• Nannestad vgs
• Alignmint
• One Mental Hub
• Windfall Trust
• Cross Labs
• Effective Altruism Estonia
• The Safe AI for Children Alliance
• Vocitas AB
• RevenueWings – Online Marketing Solutions Inc.
• Alter.org.il
• Ethical Sales Ltd
• Art-Labyrinth
• SAVE-Suicide Awareness Voices of Education
• People First
• SAFE AI Forever Inc.
• E Gallina Art
• L’angle
• Five Intelligences Alliance
• Talentor CZ
• Coalition for a Baruch Plan for AI
• BrixTec Web Soutions
• Almma.AI
• Sofia.edu
• Maaind/Lifefire
• IDEAS Research Institute
• Psst.org
• Our Fair Future
• Center for Existential Safety
• UFRGS
• Grand Challenge AI
• Buddhism & AI Initiative
• B+N Integrated Facility Services
• Advancing Your Vision
• Approachable Intelligence Research Foundation
• Studiomadtulsa
• Travel Lemming
• AI Safety UAE
• Smartphone Free Childhood US
• Nuvint Dynamics
• Techplomacy Foundation
• Onward
• The Human Line Project
• Future of Work AI Labs
• AI Recovery Collective
• PT. Ksatria Mitra S
• A Tree with Roots
• Derrubando Muros
• CeSIA – French Center for AI Safety
• SynergiAI
• Artificial Observer Limited
• AI, Tech & Privacy Academy
• Cégep de Valleyfield
• 10Billion
• AI Safety Initiative Amsterdam
• OpenDemocracy.AI
• BEIJING KANGGAO LAW FIRM
• PauseAI Spain
• interintelligence
• Permaculture DAO
• peterwoodford.com
• Acid Ranger LLC
• Adara
• Move AI
• DotZero DMCC
• Art for Healing
• Proem
• Relinvent
• Happy Path Apps, LLC
• AI Safety UAE
• Rebelyell Enterprises, LLC
• The Futures Agency
• African-Asian Council for AI and Cybersecurity
• CeSIA – French Center for AI Safety
• Velogic Pty Ltd
• Flowstate
• Tham Collective
• Go2Care, A Telerehab Company
• SAATH (South Asian Arts and Theater House)
• University of Rwanda, ACEIoT
• Safe Hands
• Convergent
• VECTRA International BV
• ufrgs
• Oedipus Design
• Big Pixel Consulting Ltd.
• Lithium Labs
• Eudaimonia Concepts
• Juniper Ventures
• SynergiAI
• Self
• Luminah.ai
• Inspire Digital Consulting
• cuBec, inc.
• Global Alliance in Sustainability & AI
• ExoMinds
• Vision Intelligence
• Carin Lynn Designs
• Positive Technology Institute
• Arc Of Life Pty Ltd
• Humanites Institute-Human&Technology
• CET – Center for Ethics in Technology
• Nitor
• Eventus.do Limited
• Entropik Technologies
• 3primitives.io
• Professional Audiobook Narrators Association
• Pauline Media Studies
• Private Family Ventures LLC
• Autonomic Health
• Moonlight
• Tech Justice Law
• Little Squirrel Studios
• Pauline Media Studies
• socialmediaharms.org
• On Your Marketing
• Right From the Start
• KEO Music
• SEDUC
• Future Weavers Association
• Human Intelligence®
• Travel By Crystal
• The New Atlantis
• Simplicity Design
• Rapid Resonance Consulting
• Business and Academic Researcher
• reshift
• Neo Negotium
• Napolart
• TheChessey
• RENACEUSA
• Arizona Green Party
• Fundacja Digital Creators
• witten.group Partnership
• High Seas
• LaCogency.co
• AI Compatible
• Worldview Studio
• Safe Core
• Graceful Spontaneous Evolution
• Quiddity Systems, Inc
• California Initiative for Technology and Democracy
• MantisGirl
• SciencePetr
• Trusted Humans Unipessoal LDA
• Unbubble News
• Vero Labs
• the Solomon Project
• San Joaquin River Club, Inc.
• Gamein fZ lle
• (F)ATTUALE rivista | podcast
• Hoffmann-Beer Homes
• NATIVA
• Navique Corporation
• INLP Pickups
• Inspi-Ráció Egyesület
• Artificial Observer Limited
• Energy and Environment Fundation
• Autonomic Health
• AI for the People
• Ctrl+i
• qbitgroup
• Critical Thinking Solutions
• Sisters of the Earth Community
• Acid Ranger LLC
• Young People’s Alliance
• KJ Camron
• AI Safety Research Fund
• Neralake Inc
• The Responsible AI Center
• GameFlow
• Dorg Society Foundation
• Beneficial AI Research
• Polyhum
• American Security Foundation
• Lifespans Technologies Pte Ltd
• Texttics
• Shane Watson Music
• Safe AI Fund (SAIF)
• LawFirmAIExpert
• José González
• Centre for Digital Ethics
• Values Based Innovation Studio
• WellFunded
• IPLNA
• New Era Code
• Psychotherapy Action Network
• AI Safety Spain (IAS)
• INLP Pickups
• Illuminant Records
• Ring 0 Cyber Security Consulting
• Humanity
• Coalition for a Baruch Plan for AI
• Transparency Coalition
• AI Consensus
• Wimax international
• The Human Line Project
• FLOSS.social
• Transparency Coalition
• Susan McP. Ryan
• Université du Québec à Rimouski
• The Institute for Value-Generative AI Inc.
• PRETO BUSINESS Corp.
• Future for Work Institute
• Alzheimer Catalunya Fundacio
• Donline Computer Consultancy Ltd
• Agency for Human Affairs (nexus-m.de)
• Cornerstone Christian School
• lobore ltd
• AI for All Forum
• North Carolina Environmental Justice Network
• Metafrasi Translator Training Centre
• Barry Schwartz Photographyy
• Reciprocity Music
• National Association of Pedagogical Colleges and High Schools (ANCLP)
• mindful@work
• Center for Countering Digital Hate