Daniel Berzosa, Professor of Constitutional Law and Fundamental Rights at Cunef Universidad, the Instituto de Estudios Bursátiles and the Instituto de Empresa-Law & Business School, member of the Global Academy and the Scientific Council of the international collective Citizens pro Europe, and Numerary Member and member of the Governing Board of the Royal European Academy of Doctors (READ), addresses the regulation of artificial intelligence in the article “AI: an Urgent Constitutional Challenge”, published on 30 April in the prominent “La tercera” section of the newspaper “ABC”. He also analyses, in the same publication, in a report published on 21 April under the title “Jurists Warn of the ‘Monopoly of Power’ of Sanchismo”, the risks facing the rule of law in Spain and democratic degradation, together with other leading jurists. This analysis is in addition to the one he offered on the radio programme “El Balance” on Capital Radio, specifically on the evolution of the war in Iran.
“The emergence of artificial intelligence in the public sphere constitutes one of the most profound and least understood challenges for constitutional democracies. This is not simply another technological innovation, but a structural phenomenon that alters the very conditions of deliberation, political representation, fundamental rights and the legitimacy of democratic power. Twentieth-century constitutions, including Spain’s, were not conceived for an environment in which non-human actors and algorithmic systems participate directly or indirectly in the formation of public opinion, in the mediation of debate and in decision-making with legal and social effects”, the expert begins his reflection on artificial intelligence, warning of the risks that this disruptive technology may entail for democracy.
In this regard, Berzosa considers that AI may affect inalienable democratic principles such as the moral autonomy of the individual, transparency in decision-making and the accountability of public authorities. Among its main risks, he highlights the manipulation of public opinion through micro-segmentation, the extreme personalisation of content and the mass generation of messages that influence emotions and behaviour; algorithmic opacity, which prevents automated decisions from being audited and controlled; and its impact on fundamental rights such as privacy, freedom of expression and equality. In response, he proposes regulating its transparency and auditability, placing particular emphasis on digital education to train critical citizens capable of resisting manipulation. “AI is not, in itself, a threat to democracy. Nor is it a guarantee of progress. It is a powerful tool whose impact will depend on the legal, institutional and ethical framework into which it is integrated. The constitutional question of our time is to ensure that the technological revolution strengthens, rather than weakens, freedom, equality and human dignity”, he concludes.
Dr. Daniel Berzosa
In “Jurists Warn of the ‘Monopoly of Power’ of Sanchismo”, he considers that the situation currently being experienced in Spain is not merely a parliamentary crisis but a crisis of the legitimacy of the legislative process as a whole. “When Congress systematically resorts to last-minute amendments to evade debate, or when bills are used to avoid the mandatory reports of the Council of State and other relevant bodies, the principle of deliberation that justifies the existence of Parliament is being emptied of content”, he warns. Finally, on “El Balance” on Capital Radio, he analysed, from a historical perspective, the response given by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to the entrenched problem of Iran as a source of destabilisation in the Middle East, with its nuclear potential.
Berzosa is a member of the Society of Diplomacy and Political Sciences of the United States, coordinator of the International Observatory on the Regulation of Public Sector Entities of the University of Santiago de Compostela, member of the organising committees of the World Law Congress conferences held in Cartagena de Indias in 2021 and Madrid in 2019, and author of books and scientific articles published in prestigious journals. He is also a recognised commentator on legal and political science issues in the leading Spanish media.
