From Solvency to Dignity: Artificial Intelligence, Energy, and a New Social Pact

Abstract

Artificial intelligence requires systematic reflection on the relationship between technological progress, collective responsibility and the dignity of the person, making a new social pact necessary. The article links dependence on fossil fuels to geopolitical imbalances, inflationary pressures and the ability of authoritarian regimes to support power policies, proposing international coordination, including at the UN, that reconciles energy security, climate protection and the transition to renewable sources and, in perspective, nuclear fusion. This analysis is accompanied by the criticism of an economy based exclusively on solvency, which excludes needs without adequate purchasing power from the production and distribution of essential goods. To combat poverty, inequality and vulnerability to war, an international agency capable of promoting socially useful work and coordinating the production and distribution of fundamental resources is envisaged. In this framework, artificial intelligence and robotics could contribute to the analysis of needs, the organization of work, agriculture, assistance and scientific research, as long as they remain subordinate to democratic decision-making and criteria of transparency, human control and non-discrimination. Finally, the technological comparison between the United States, China and Europe shows the need, especially for Europe, to strengthen investment, research and regulatory capacity. Energy, peace, social justice and innovation are thus brought back to the different dimensions of a single pact based on collective responsibility and human dignity.