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89 Wash. L. Rev. 117 (2014)
Machines without Principals: Liability Rules and Artificial Intelligence

handle is hein.journals/washlr89 and id is 124 raw text is: MACHINES WITHOUT PRINCIPALS: LIABILITY RULES AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE David C. Viadeck INTRODUCTION The idea that humans could, at some point, develop machines that actually think for themselves and act autonomously has been embedded in our literature and culture since the beginning of civilization.' But these ideas were generally thought to be religious expressions-what one scholar describes as an effort to forge our own Gods2 -or pure science fiction. There was one important thread that tied together these visions of a special breed of superhuman men/machines: They invariably were stronger, smarter, and sharper analytically; that is, superior in all respects to humans, except for those traits involving emotional intelligence and empathy. But science fiction writers were of two minds about the capacity of super-smart machines to make life better for humans. One vision was uncritically Utopian. Intelligent machines, this account goes, would transform and enlighten society by performing the mundane, mind-numbing work that keeps humans from pursuing higher intellectual, spiritual, and artistic callings.3 This view was captured in the popular animated 1960s television show The Jetsons.4 As its title * Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center. The author wishes to thank his Georgetown Law colleague Girardeau Spann and Perkins Coie partner Albert Gidari, Jr., for their thoughts on the article and the staff of the Washington Law Review, especially Lauren Watts, Laura Powell, Brooke Howlett, and Brian Epley, for their research and editorial assistance. 1. See, e.g., PAMELA MCCORDUCK, MACHINES WHO THINK: A PERSONAL INQUIRY INTO THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, at xxiii iv (2004). 2. Id. at 413. 3. See Anne Trafton, Assistive Robot Adapts to People, New Places, MIT TECHTALK, Apr. 11, 2007, at 3 (reporting developments from MIT's Humanoid Robotics Group in perfecting Domo, a robot that can adapt to situations to assist people with everyday chores, everyday life, and everyday work), available at http://web.mit.edulnewsoffice/2007/techtalk51-23.pdf. 4. The history of The Jetsons can be found at various websites, including, The Jetsons, WIKIPEDIA, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The Jetsons (last visited Feb. 12, 2014), and, Hanna Barbera Wiki, The Jetsons, WIKIA, http://hanna-barbera.wikia.com/wikilThe Jetsons (last visited Feb. 12, 2014). 117

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