Thupten Jinpa, Buddhist scholar and longtime translator for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, shares a powerful reflection on the rise of Artificial Intelligence during the Minds, AI, and Ethics conference in Dharamsala. Speaking from a Buddhist perspective, Jinpa explores the interdependence between knowledge, power, and responsibility — and warns of a “slippery slope of language” that risks turning machines into “persons” while devaluing real human life. He explains that: AI is creating a new reality driven by power without accountability. The use of words like mind, intention, consciousness, and sentience for machines is dangerous — language shapes how we think. Consciousness in Buddhism is awareness with subjectivity and reflexivity — something a machine cannot possess. The Buddhist idea of interdependence reminds us that every action has consequences. Compassion must be the moral anchor of all technological progress, guiding how we design and deploy AI. “A compassionate system must pay attention to the vulnerable. Compassion is the best guarantee that what we create stays in the service of humanity.” — Thupten Jinpa #ThuptenJinpa #DalaiLama #AIethics #Consciousness #MindAndLife