Information School Professor Chirag Shah recently published “,” a book concerning how autonomous AI is affecting society — and what we, as individuals, can do about it.
As artificial intelligence has been integrated into commercial practices, Shah has noticed that people tend to rush into building, buying and utilizing autonomous AI without considering potential long-term effects. Sacrifices may be made by utilizing artificial intelligence for short-term gain.
“Agent Nation” provides a humanistic perspective on these effects. As they delegate tasks to artificial agents, humans are sacrificing their own autonomy without recognizing the damage this could generate, Shah argues. He sees this is a concerning pattern across industries employing autonomous AI. He presents his readers a question: “Is this what we want?”
As a researcher and educator deeply rooted in the field of AI, Shah develops agents and encourages user responsibility. He wrote “Agent Nation” with these two perspectives in mind.
Shah states that he is neither for nor against autonomous AI. He simply encourages his readers to use awareness and responsibility when deploying these agents.
“AI agents are becoming very common across many different fields,” Shah said in an interview. “These agents themselves are not new.”
Yet, despite this proliferation of agents, the impact, benefits and harms are yet to be deeply considered. Unanticipated harm is very plausible. In the book, Shah writes this must be addressed before it is too late:
The question is no longer whether AI agents will make decisions on our behalf — they already do. The question is whether we'll have a say in how those decisions are made, or whether we'll wake up one day to discover the rules of society have been rewritten without our consent.
Through research and real-world case studies, “Agent Nation” analyzes the specific impacts AI has already made and offers a foundation for regulation.
Shah hopes the book will allow its readers to acknowledge that the effects of AI extend further than one may think, while fostering the notion that “we are in this together.” Society is to blame for the problem but is also responsible for the solution, he said.
Shah notes that his book is not merely a philosophical discussion about society’s impact; it urges people to contribute to the solution. He wrote it with a broad audience in mind.
“We all have power,” Shah said, comparing this power to a democracy. “Everybody gets a vote.”
Learn more about “Agent Nation” on the book’s .