Should AIs be people too?

The Future of Life Institute revisits the question of AI legal personhood, drawing a historical thread from the Dutch East India Company—one of the first entities granted corporate personhood—to ask whether the concept needs fundamental revision for the age of artificial agents. The question is not merely philosophical: legal personhood determines liability, rights, and the architecture of accountability. As AI systems take on greater autonomous roles, the answer will shape who is responsible when they cause harm.