Critiquing the Development of Artificial Intelligence and Posthumanism: An Islamic Philosophical Perspective on Technology and the Future of Humanity

Moh Taufik R Yusuf; Ruslan

doi:10.24256/jiis.v4i2.11834

Authors

Moh Taufik R Yusuf Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, Indonesia
Ruslan Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v4i2.11834

Keywords:

Artificial Intelligence, Posthumanism, Islamic Philosophy, Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah, Khalifah, Responsible AI Governance

Abstract

The rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies has fundamentally transformed contemporary society while simultaneously intensifying debates surrounding posthumanism and the future of human existence. These developments raise profound philosophical questions regarding human identity, moral agency, and the ethical boundaries between humans and intelligent machines. This study critically examines the relationship between AI, posthumanism, and Islamic philosophy by employing qualitative library research grounded in philosophical hermeneutics, content analysis, and descriptive-critical interpretation. The findings indicate that although AI significantly contributes to scientific innovation and social development, it also introduces critical ethical challenges, including algorithmic bias, Explainable AI, AI Alignment, dehumanization, and the erosion of human moral responsibility. Unlike posthumanist perspectives that tend to blur the ontological distinction between humans and intelligent machines, Islamic philosophy affirms human beings as moral agents entrusted with the responsibility of stewardship (khalifah). As its principal theoretical contribution, this study proposes the Islamic Posthuman Ethics Framework (IPEF), which integrates tawhid as the ontological foundation, khalifah as the basis of moral agency, and maqasid al-shariah as the ethical framework for evaluating AI development. The proposed framework advances five operational principles—human dignity, justice, accountability, transparency, and public benefit—as normative foundations for Responsible AI Governance within the Islamic philosophical tradition.

References

Al-Attas, S. M. N. (1993). Islam and Secularism. International Institute of Islamic Thought and CivilizatioAl-Qur'an al-Karim.

Al-Ghazali, A. H. (2013). Ihya' Ulum al-Din. Dar al-Kutub al-'Ilmiyyah.

Al-Shatibi, A. I. (1997). Al-Muwafaqat fi Usul al-Shari'ah. Dar Ibn Affan.

Arrieta, A. B., et al. (2020). Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI): Concepts, taxonomies, opportunities and challenges toward responsible AI. Information Fusion, 58, 82–115.

Auda, J. (2008). Maqasid Al-Shariah as Philosophy of Islamic Law: A Systems Approach. The International Institute of Islamic Thought.

Braidotti, R. (2013). The Posthuman. Polity Press.

Bryson, J. J. (2018). Patiency is not a virtue: The design of intelligent systems and systems of ethics. Ethics and Information Technology, 20(1), 15–26.

Dahmayati, D., Sanusi, S., & Kartini, K. (2021). Online Learning Strategy for Islamic Education Studies during the Covid-19 Pandemic in Elementary Schools. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(1), 52–61. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i1.2271

Dignum, V. (2019). Responsible Artificial Intelligence: How to develop and use AI in a responsible way. AI Matters, 5(2), 13–15.

European Commission. (2019). Ethics guidelines for trustworthy AI. High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence.

Ferrando, F. (2019). Philosophical Posthumanism. Bloomsbury Academic.

Floridi, L. (2013). The Ethics of Information. Oxford University Press.

Floridi, L., & Cowls, J. (2019). A unified framework of five principles for AI in society. Harvard Data Science Review, 1(1), 1–15.

Haraway, D. J. (1991). Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature. Routledge.

Hariadi, H., Zainuddin, F., & Mustaming, M. (2022). Strategies of Islamic Religious Education Teachers in Guiding Prayer Practices in Darussalam Integrated Islamic Elementary School. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(2), 92–96. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i2.2530

Hatika, H., Abu Nawas, M. Z., Takwim, M., & Riawarda, A. (2021). Implementation of Al-Qur’an Literacy for High School Students. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i1.2267

Hayles, N. K. (1999). How We Became Posthuman: Virtual Bodies in Cybernetics, Literature, and Informatics. University of Chicago Press.

Hermawati, L., Arif, M., & Marina, D. (2022). Utilization of WhatsApp Application Features and Zoom Cloud Meetings as Online Learning Media during the Covid-19 Pandemic at Madrasah Tsanawiyah An-Nashihin Kademangan. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(2), 76–82. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i2.2573

Ibn Kathir, I. (2000). Tafsir al-Qur'an al-'Azim. Dar Tayyibah.

Imran, A. (2022). The Role of the Family in Fostering Adolescent Religious Attitudes during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(2), 70–75. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i2.2548

Jobin, A., Ienca, M., & Vayena, E. (2019). The global landscape of AI ethics guidelines. Nature Machine Intelligence, 1(9), 389–399.

Jumarni, J. (2022). Teacher’s Strategy in Improving the Ability to Read and Write the Qur’an of TPA Santri during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(2), 62–69. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i2.2425

Latour, B. (2005). Reassembling the Social: An Introduction to Actor-NetworkTheory. Oxford University Press.

McCarthy, J. (2007). What is Artificial Intelligence? Stanford University.

Mittelstadt, B. D. (2019). Principles alone cannot guarantee ethical AI. Nature Machine Intelligence, 1(11), 501–507.

Moor, J. H. (2006). The nature, importance, and difficulty of machine ethics. IEEE Intelligent Systems, 21(4), 18–21.

Nasr, S. H. (1996). Religion and the Order of Nature. Oxford University Press.

Nasr, S. H. (2007). Islamic Philosophy from Its Origin to the Present. State University of New York Press.

Nurwati, N., Kaharuddin, K., Efendi, E., & Masruddin, M. (2021). Implementation of School Supervisory Academic Supervision as an Effort to Increase Teacher Performance in Junior High School. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(1), 28–37. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i1.2269

OECD. (2019). OECD Principles on Artificial Intelligence. OECD Publishing.

OpenAI. (2023). GPT-4 Technical Report. OpenAI.

Qardhawi, Y. (1995). Fiqh al-Awlawiyyat. Maktabah Wahbah.

Ratnayanti, R., Hasbi, H., & Marwiyah, S. (2021). Remedial Teaching Patterns in Improving Islamic Religious Education Learning Outcomes for Junior High School Students. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(1), 38–51. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i1.2270

Rahwan, I. (2018). Society-in-the-loop: Programming the algorithmic social contract. Ethics and Information Technology, 20(1), 5–14.

Russell, S., & Norvig, P. (2021). Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach (4th ed.). Pearson.

Sukirman, S., Firman, F., & Ilham, D. (2021). The Role of the Taklim Council in the Development of Islamic Education. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(1), 9–27. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i1.2268

Sundari, I. N. N., Hayatina, L., & Sanusi, A. (2022). The Role of Murobbi in Formation of Santri Morals at the Tahfizh Qur’an Islamic Boarding School Al Azka Putri Cisauk Tangerang. Journal of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 1(2), 83–91. https://doi.org/10.24256/jiis.v1i2.2569

UNESCO. (2021). Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. UNESCO.

World Economic Forum. (2025). The Future of Jobs Report 2025. World Economic Forum.

Wolfe, C. (2010). What Is Posthumanism? University of Minnesota Press.