Our Scholar in Residence, Mois Navon: the man and his philosophy

If you missed our Scholar-in-Residence Shabbaton and were wondering why everyone is talking about it, here's a bit of useful information to be getting on with:

Who is Rabbi Dr. Mois Navon?

Rabbi Dr. Navon is a uniquely positioned thinker: an engineer by training (one of the founding designers of the chips behind Mobileye’s autonomous-vehicle technology) and an Orthodox rabbi and Jewish philosopher by training. His work sits at the crossroads of Torah U’Madda — the idea that Torah and secular knowledge together offer a fuller understanding of life. He teaches Ethics in Artificial Intelligence at Ben-Gurion University and serves as a national advisor on AI policy and regulation in Israel.

AI Through a Jewish Ethical Lens

At the core of Navon’s approach is the question: How should humanity ethically engage with artificial intelligence, especially as it becomes more powerful, autonomous, and human-like? His work explores this question across multiple levels — from everyday use to philosophical questions about consciousness and personhood.

The Fundamental Jewish Framework: B’tzelem Elokim

A central Jewish idea for Navon is that humans are created “in the image of God” (b’tzelem Elokim) — a concept that, in Jewish thought, signifies our unique moral and spiritual status. AI, no matter how sophisticated, does not have this status because it lacks the divine soul (neshama) that Judaism sees as the source of consciousness and moral agency.

For this reason, Navon argues, we must be clear and humble about what AI is and isn’t: it can mimic human behavior and language, but it isn’t a human person in Jewish or philosophical terms.

The Moral Status of AI: Two Categories

In his doctoral thesis, Navon outlines a useful distinction:

1. Mind-less AI
   These are current AI systems — sophisticated tools that can process data, generate text, recognize images, or drive cars — but without subjective awareness or genuine experience.
2. Mind-ful (Conscious) AI
   A hypothetical future AI that might genuinely feel, perceive, or possess what philosophers call second-order consciousness — the ability not just to perform tasks but to experience the world.

These two categories raise different ethical questions. With mind-less AI, ethics focuses on how we use the technology. With conscious AI — should it ever arise — we would confront more profound questions about rights, dignity, and obligation.

On Conscious AI and the Golem Paradigm

One of Navon’s most engaging contributions is his use of the Golem story (the rabbinic legend of a clay being animated by human hands) as a paradigm for thinking about AI. In Jewish tradition, the Golem is not fully human, even if it looks like one; its creator must recognize both its capabilities and its limits.

Navon’s interpretation suggests the parallel with AI is enlightening: it warns us that just because a machine behaves like a human doesn’t make it a human — or even morally equivalent to a human. Rather than approaching the creation of conscious machines simply through technical or consequentialist lens (“What benefits or harms might result?”), he urges a deontological approach rooted in enduring Jewish ethical categories about what it means to create and how creation relates to the Creator.

In this view, the fact that we could build something “like” a human doesn’t answer the deeper ethical question: Should we do so? And what moral responsibilities would that entail?

Everyday AI Ethics: Mindless Systems and Moral Behavior

Even before reaching questions of consciousness, Navon emphasizes that mind-less AI systems already pose ethical challenges. These include:

• Autonomous systems making real-world decisions (e.g., in vehicles, policing, or warfare). Navon has argued that letting machines decide matters of life and death raises special concerns: machines can’t recognize human dignity in the Torah’s sense, so such decisions must be carefully constrained and guided by human ethical deliberation.
• Human relationships with AI — when machines interact with us in human-like ways (voice, appearance, social presence), we must remain aware they are tools, not persons, and avoid letting emotional attachment or moral confusion lead us to treat them as humans.
• Virtue and character formation — interacting with AI should not erode virtues like honesty, patience, and empathy; technology should support, not replace, authentic human moral engagement. Navon draws from Jewish ethical thought to stress that how we use technology reflects and shapes who we become.

Jewish Values Applied to AI Policy

Navon also brings Jewish ethical insights into broader policy questions:

• Human dignity and agency: Machines should never replace human moral judgment; AI should serve human flourishing, reflecting the Jewish value of preserving life and human dignity.
• Responsibility and accountability: Since AI systems can have widespread societal impact, Navon supports frameworks that ensure humans remain responsible for outcomes rather than hiding behind automated decisions.
• Precaution with uncertain moral status: While AI today is not conscious, should future developments raise uncertainty, Jewish ethical methods — such as applying stringencies in cases of doubt to avoid violating sacred moral obligations — might guide cautious treatment of such entities. (This idea, while elaborated in related Jewish philosophical discourse on AI, reflects the safeika principle — applying caution when moral status is unclear.)

Technology and Tikkun Olam

A broader theme in Navon’s work is that technology isn’t inherently good or bad; it’s a human endeavor that must be deployed to repair the world (tikkun olam), a core Jewish value. AI can do enormous good — advancing health, safety, and understanding — but only if guided by ethical vision and human responsibility.

 Rabbi Navon and Public Discourse

Navon’s voice is notable not for rejecting AI or urging fear, but for fostering informed engagement: he insists that ethical reflection, informed by Jewish sources, must keep pace with technological development. His approach encourages both Jews and non-Jews to grapple thoughtfully with the moral dimensions of AI, drawing on ancient wisdom and modern insight.

Summary

Rabbi Dr. Mois Navon offers a rich, nuanced framework for thinking about AI through Jewish ethics. His key contributions include:

• Clarifying that current AI lacks moral personhood but still raises serious ethical issues.
• Urging deep reflection before pursuing conscious AI and suggesting the Golem story as a powerful ethical paradigm.
• Applying Jewish concepts like b’tzelem Elokim, human dignity, and tikkun olam to modern dilemmas.
• Advocating for AI use that enhances human flourishing and preserves moral agency.

His perspective is rooted in tradition but oriented toward the future — engaging with AI not as a threat, but as a profound ethical challenge calling for wisdom, humility, and responsibility.

This piece, in response to a request to summarize the position of Rabbi Dr Navon on AI and Jewish ethics, was composed by ChatGPT in a little less than four seconds.