The Zeroth Law of Agentic AI

Asimov&rsquo;s Zeroth Law &ndash; &lsquo;a robot may not harm humanity, or by inaction allow humanity to come to harm&rsquo; &ndash; is the law that turns robots into philosopher-kings. Asimov knew it was a transgression. The robot who derived it burned out. The novel ends with deep ambivalence about whether that reasoning was wisdom or hubris. This conversation picks up where the Three Laws left…