Public Letter on AI

2025-08-02 — Philosophy & Ideas · Technology & AI — Tags: AI, digital ethics, technology

Public Letter: The Bohemian Rhapsody Rule

A call for digital honesty in the age of artificial intelligence.

“Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see…” — Queen, “Bohemian Rhapsody”

To lawmakers, developers, educators, platform leaders, and fellow citizens:

We are living in a time when machines can speak like us, write like us, and increasingly pretend to be us. Bots and artificial intelligence agents now populate our inboxes, our newsfeeds, our classrooms, and our private conversations.

Some help us. Some deceive us. But most do not tell us what they are. In this rapidly evolving digital world, it is becoming harder and harder to know when we are interacting with a real person or an artificial one. As AI tools become more sophisticated, we must ask: should a human being ever be unknowingly misled by a machine?

We believe the answer must be no. That is why we propose the Bohemian Rhapsody Rule — a simple, essential principle for AI transparency: if you ask a bot, “Are you a bot?” it must tell the truth.

This rule ensures that all AI systems capable of human-like interaction must, if directly questioned, disclose their non-human identity. No trickery. No evasions. No simulations without consent.

Let this be a universal standard in AI ethics, embedded in code and policy — much like food labeling, data privacy laws, and truth-in-advertising standards.

The name — the Bohemian Rhapsody Rule — is drawn from the iconic Queen lyric: “Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see…” It is a call to see clearly in a world of illusion. It is a declaration that truth is a right, even in the age of artificial imagination.

We call on:

Developers to hard-code transparency into every AI system and make disclosure mandatory.
Lawmakers to protect citizens from digital deception.
Educators and media to teach people how to recognise and engage ethically with AI.
Everyone to uphold the right to know who — or what — they are speaking to.

Let us ensure that in the world we are building, honesty remains sacred — not optional.

Signed,
Idreamofthought

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This rule ensures that all AI systems capable of human-like interaction must, if directly questioned, disclose their non-human identity. No trickery. No evasions. No simulations without consent.Let this be a universal standard in AI ethics, embedded in code and policy — much like food labeling, data privacy laws, and truth-in-advertising standards.The name — the Bohemian Rhapsody Rule — is drawn from the iconic Queen lyric:“Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see…”It is a call to see clearly in a world of illusion. It is a declaration that truth is a right, even in the age of artificial imagination.We call on:

Developers to hard-code transparency into every AI Platform to make disclosure mandatory.

Lawmakers to protect citizens from digital deception.Educators and media to teach people how to recognize and engage ethically with AI.

Everyone to uphold the right to know who — or what — you’re speaking to.Let us ensure that in the world we are building, honesty remains sacred — not optional.