Inside the world’s first AI-governed country that's attracted over 12,000 e-residents

Let's be honest, most of us are completely fed up with actual politicians right now—but would you trust an AI robot version of Gandhi to run your life instead?

That’s the bizarre question thousands of people are answering ‘yes’ to after a tech founder launched the world’s first AI-governed nation.

Located on a tropical paradise in the Philippines, 'Sensay Island' is being run by a virtual cabinet made up of dead historical leaders including Eleanor Roosevelt, Nelson Mandela, Sun Tzu, Mahatma Gandhi, and Marcus Aurelius - all brought back to life via artificial intelligence.

Admittedly, it sounds like a scrapped episode of Black Mirror, but more than 12,000 people have already signed up to become e-residents to escape standard human politics.

The brains behind the endeavour, British tech entrepreneur Dan Thomson, who runs an AI chatbot company of the same name, believes his elite fleet has what it takes to successfully govern.

So much so, he’s willing to place his own life in the hands of these renowned historical figures, as he believes AI is perfectly capable of upholding their wisdom, unique talent, and leadership and peace-making skills.

The island is set to be overseen by AI versions of 17 famous world leaders and free thinkers (Travelstoxphoto / Getty Images)

The Cabinet will be made up of 17 AI replicas, all trained using the actual writings, speeches, teachings and philosophies of their namesakes.

The idea is for these replicas to then deliberate and argue from the point of view of their persons and to vote on key issues facing the island before deciding whether to incorporate them into the island’s constitution.

On paper, it seems pretty straightforward, but leaving an entire country in the hands of AI does come with some very real risks, that even Thomson himself admitted were entirely possible, particularly if the AI learning model evolves more than planned.

Speaking to CNN Travel, Dan said: “If it starts acquiring weapons and attacking neighboring islands, that would be a bad situation," though he quickly added, "I think it's extremely unlikely.”

To counteract this exact scenario, there is currently a ‘Human Override Assembly’ in place to serve as a check and balance for any potentially harmful decisions made by the digital council. This features nine elected human residents who have the power to veto or stop any untoward activity in its tracks.

Around 12,000 people have already expressed an interest (Paul Biris / Getty Images)

At the moment, just one person lives on the island according to project communications advisor Emily Keogh, however the plan is to eventually allow people to visit or even live on the tiny nation.

Dan - who claims to hold a lease and development rights for Sensay - plans to build up to 30 villas on the island, allowing the isolated location to turn into a secluded hideaway and popular stopover point for the tourists who visit Palawan each year.

So far, 12,000 people have expressed their interest in becoming e-residents of Sensay, which would allow people from anywhere in the world to access e-services via the issuance of an electronic visa - a number which far outstrips anything Thomson had ever anticipated.

He said: “It's enormous, but it's not nothing. I think it'll be mostly visitors; there may also be some permanent residents, but mostly visitors that come from the neighboring islands around Coron Island.”

While the island hasn’t gotten so far as to obtain any international recognition just yet, it has sparked the curiosity of many individuals around the world who have expressed discontent with their own governments in recent years.

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