INVESTIGATING THE POSSIBILITY OF CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ENTITIES IN NIGERIA
A. U. ONOCHIE · African Journal Of Criminal Law And Jurisprudence · 2023
The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) raises questions about the possibility of ascribing criminal liability to AI entities, against the backdrop that these entities act autonomously and with limited control from humans. There is yet no criminal legislation in Nigeria touching on the liability of AI entities for crimes committed and it is against this background that this paper is aimed at investigating the possibility of ascribing criminal liability to AI entities in Nigeria. The paper analyzed the liability problems associated with AI entities, with a focus on the internal and external elements of criminal liability - the mens rea and actus reus. The doctrinal method of data collection is adopted to examine these liability problems by interpreting models of criminal responsibility of AI as well as assessing its legal status and juxtaposing it with the existing penal laws in Nigeria. This paper found that under the extant Nigerian criminal laws, AI entities not being subject of criminal law are fundamentally incapable of being criminally liable. The possibility of the ascription of criminal liability to AI entities in future is, however, not far-fetched as AI entities advance in technology to a point they become fully autonomous. Mindful of the dangers posed by AI entities and the absence of any criminal legislation, the paper recommended that in the interim government should put in place a framework that imposes supervisory responsibilities on AI’s owners, a breach of which would attract administrative sanctions.