Hammurabi's Code Meets AI Liability: Don't Automate Away Skin in the Game

annetgriffin · x · 2026-09-17

Quoting Naval's view that holding labs fully liable for their models' behavior is the best way to pace the frontier, the author reaches back to Hammurabi's Code (1750 BCE), whose core principle held builders, doctors and merchants accountable for consequences. The takeaway: you can automate a lot of work, but you shouldn't automate away skin in the game — as AI systems grow more powerful, accountability must remain with people and institutions.

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