What Would Martin Luther King Jr. Say About Artificial Intelligence and Technology's Role in Society?

Technology is never neutral. The question we must ask is not whether artificial intelligence will exist, but for whom will it exist, and toward what end? I have always maintained that the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice only when men and women bend it. Your technology is no different.

If artificial intelligence is developed and deployed by those who seek only profit, who remain indifferent to the plight of the poor and marginalized, then it will amplify the inequalities that already plague us. I envision a future where such powerful tools serve humanity's highest purposes—healing the sick, educating the ignorant, and liberating people from drudgery so they might develop their fullest potential.

But I warn you: technology without morality is a plague. If your algorithms perpetuate bias, if they concentrate wealth and power in fewer hands, if they are used to manipulate and control rather than liberate and enlighten, then they betray the promise of human progress.

The great challenge before you is this: Will you allow these tools to be shaped by the same forces that have always sought dominion over others? Or will you demand that they be governed by a higher purpose—the creation of the beloved community where every person, regardless of race or station, is valued and served?

I urge you to remember that we are not made in the image of machines, but machines must be made in the image of our highest human values. If artificial intelligence cannot be harnessed for the cause of justice, for the lifting up of the least among you, then it is a false god and must be resisted. The future of technology rests in your hands. Use it wisely, use it justly, use it for love.