Muslims not concerned enough about AI challenges, Anwar says

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has expressed concern that Muslims, including religious scholars, are not adequately addressing the issues raised by artificial intelligence (AI). Speaking at Markaz Saquafathi Sunniya, Anwar highlighted the worries of leading voices in AI development, who caution about the potential societal impacts of the technology. Scholars themselves were found to be the least concerned, he noted, and the broader Muslim community has not followed these developments closely.

Anwar emphasized the importance of Muslims not ignoring AI, digital transformation, and other emerging technologies, warning that doing so could leave them reliant on those controlling such knowledge. He cautioned that without sufficient understanding and expertise, societies risk becoming vulnerable to external influence and being weaponized by foreign forces.

However, he stressed that adopting technology should not mean forsaking religious and moral values, and that Muslims need both technological proficiency and a solid foundation in faith and ethics.

He proposed the idea of an Asia forum to study how societies could leverage AI while maintaining strong values and faith, committing to support the plan. Anthropic, a US-based AI firm, recently reported on how malicious actors exploited its Claude AI system for state-sponsored surveillance and propaganda, as well as its use in disrupting a commercial election manipulation platform that primarily affected Malaysians. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission is currently reviewing the report.

During the event, Anwar received the inaugural Excellence Award from the Sheikh Abubacker Foundation, marking him as the first recipient. This award underscores the strong relationship between Anwar and Sheikh Abu Bakar, and follows Malaysia's 2023 award of its highest honor for influential Muslim scholars to the Indian cleric.