AI Godfather Yoshua Bengio Says AI Can Leave Humans Powerless If We Do This Mistake

AI models are improving at a very fast pace, and the productivity is off the roof. And just a couple of days into 2026, we have the latest AI controversy in hand. So, a lot of people have bene indulging in the debate over giving AI systems legal rights just like humans. In simple terms, with the rights in action, AI systems will be treated like humans. Nonetheless, that didn't go very well with AI godfather Yoshua Bengio, who stated that a sci-fi scenario sure sounds interesting, but could turn out to be a disaster for humanity.Yoshua Bengio, also known as one of the three godfathers of AI along with Yann LeCun and Geoffrey Hinton, has opposed the idea of giving AI any or equal rights to humans. In an interview with The Guardian, he said that this

will be nothing short of 'giving citizenship to hostile extraterrestrials.' Yoshua Bengio also said that people need to reconsider the demand. He said, 'People demanding that AIs have rights would be a huge mistake.'

Humans May Fail To Shut Down AI If It Gets Legal Rights

Giving AI legal rights is like inviting problems that don't even exist. As of now, humans are heavily relying on AI not just for information but also for emotional support. Bengio said that humanity may lose control over AI in the coming days. He said, 'Frontier AI models already show signs of self-preservation in experimental settings today, and eventually giving them rights would mean we're not allowed to shut them down.'Microsoft Has Listed 40 Jobs That AI Will Eat In 2026, Check If You Are Safe Or NotBengio says that the belief that chatbots are being considered conscious is going to drive bad decisions. The AI godfather reiterated that this is like granting citizenship to aliens who end up having bad intentions. Bengo concluded by saying, 'Imagine some alien species came to the planet and at some point we realise that they have nefarious intentions for us. Do we grant them citizenship and rights, or do we defend our lives?'