Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa has issued a stark warning: artificial intelligence, after capturing human attention through social media and exploiting our innate need for connection, is now poised to erode our fundamental autonomy. She emphasizes that without immediate legislative intervention, humanity risks losing its capacity for self-determination.
Ressa, a journalist with dual Filipino and American citizenship, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021 for her work documenting the immense influence wielded by major tech giants. Currently, she co-chairs a UN international scientific panel tasked with assessing AI’s global impact on people’s lives.
The Three Waves of AI Impact
Ressa outlined that AI, a technology existing for about 70 years, has impacted the public in three distinct waves. The first wave, she explained, involved social media platforms that seized users’ attention, fragmented societal consensus, and contributed to individual isolation.
“The second wave still exploits our psychological need for intimate connections, invading our biological instincts: these are chatbots,” Ressa stated. “The third wave directly attacks our autonomy – AI with autonomous capabilities and multi-agent collaboration. These advanced models no longer just imitate humans; they will act on our behalf.”
The Urgency of AI Regulation
She urged the public to actively advocate for AI regulation, putting pressure on politicians to enact relevant legislation. “Calling for AI regulation is not an issue of free speech; it is a public safety issue,” asserted Ressa, who is also a co-founder and CEO of the news organization Rappler.
During an interview in Oslo, while attending a conference on threats to democracy, she stated, “I believe we have reached a point where if we don’t act now, the situation will become irreversible. If we don’t intervene now, things will spiral out of human control.”
Countering the “AI Race” Argument
Critics, including former US President Donald Trump, have voiced concerns that AI regulation could cause the United States to fall behind China in the AI race. Ressa dismissed this argument as a mere “clever narrative.”
“In fact, compared to Silicon Valley’s products for global users, China has implemented more safety mechanisms for its citizens. Take TikTok, for example; the version used domestically in China has age restrictions,” she pointed out.
Building Digital Public Spaces
Ressa proposed the creation of communication platforms operated by public interest groups, independent of large tech companies’ control. She drew a parallel to cities building public infrastructure like parks. Rappler’s own initiative, Rappler Communities, launched in 2023, serves as an example of this concept.
Rappler Communities is a mobile application built on the open-source, secure, and decentralized Matrix protocol. This platform enables Rappler’s editorial team to communicate with readers, and crucially, allows readers to engage in “sincere dialogue” with each other, Ressa explained.
Rappler has invited other local media outlets in the Philippines to join the platform and plans to extend this model to other news organizations across Southeast Asia. “This can be a digital safe space for people. They can talk to each other, and more importantly, learn to listen to each other. This is how a healthy democracy can function,” she concluded.
