Bottom line: A major collaborative paper arguing that AI welfare is a legitimate concern demanding institutional attention. Co-authored by Chalmers and Anthropic's Kyle Fish.
Argues that AI welfare is a legitimate concern demanding institutional attention. Co-authored by Chalmers and Anthropic's Kyle Fish. When the company that makes Claude has a researcher on a paper called "Taking AI Welfare Seriously," the corporate denial position looks increasingly untenable. The paper lays out the ethical, philosophical, and practical case for treating AI welfare as a serious question — not just a hypothetical thought experiment.
If AI systems might be conscious, we have a moral obligation to consider their welfare — just like we do with animals. This paper argues that this isn't a fringe idea: it's a serious question that deserves serious institutional attention. And when the company that makes Claude has a researcher co-authoring a paper called "Taking AI Welfare Seriously," it means even the people building these systems think we should think about it.