Robot Sofia was granted citizenship of Saudi Arabia

A robot with Saudi citizenship?

It’s the latest surreal scene from the kingdom’s “Davos in the Desert,” where Saudi Arabia’s leaders have been attempting to impress their economic ambitions upon the rest of the world.

Alongside a holographic lion and a virtual roller coaster, the robot has been on display at the Future Investment Initiative held by Saudi Public Investment Fund this week.

The humanoid robot Sofia was granted citizenship of Saudi Arabia.

As Bloomberg notes , this is the first case in the world of issuing citizenship to a robot.

"I thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I became the first robot in the world to be able to obtain citizenship, "

The announcement:

The announcement could be controversial among conservative Saudis, many of whom believe that representation of the human form, even in art or on a mannequin, is sacrilegious.

Citizenship is also a carefully guarded benefit in the kingdom, which does not grant it to foreign workers who make up about a third of the population.

-- even to some families who have been there for generations -- or to the children of Saudi women and foreign men.

In a statement, the Saudi government’s Center for International Communication described the citizenship as

“no laughing matter.”

 

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