Lucius Caviola
As AI systems become increasingly advanced and human-like, societies will face a fundamental question: are these systems conscious, and if so, do they deserve moral or legal rights? This chapter argues that rather than converging on a shared answer, society is likely to enter a period of confusion, uncertainty, and deep disagreement. Drawing on recent empirical evidence, it shows that both experts and the public are already divided on the possibility of AI consciousness and the moral status of digital minds. It argues that this division is driven by structural features of the issue, including the difficulty of conceptualising and measuring consciousness, conflicting economic, political, and emotional incentives, and a disconnect between AI systems’ internal architectures and their outwardly human-like behaviour. Such disagreement creates risks of political polarisation, regulatory instability, geopolitical tension, and an increased risk of ultimately misattributing moral status. It concludes by outlining strategies for improving expert coordination, fostering constructive public discourse, designing AI systems to reduce moral confusion, and reducing exclusive reliance on consciousness in moral and policy decisions.