World Peace

Isn’t true that the Hadith or rather collection of such writing was banned after the death of Prophet Muhammad to avoid confusion similar to what’s happening in Saudi Arabia?

GoogleAI Mode: It is true that the writing and systematic collection of Hadith were initially discouraged and even banned by the first Caliphs, including Abu Bakr and Umar ibn al-Khattab, for reasons related to preventing confusion with the Quran. The concerns raised at that time are often cited today by critics (known as Quranists or Hadith-rejectors) to highlight what they see as similar issues of doctrinal confusion and division within modern Islam, including in Saudi Arabia. 

Historical Context of the Hadith Ban

The early Islamic leadership prohibited or discouraged the writing of Hadith (sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad) for specific reasons: 

• Protecting the Quran’s Integrity: The primary concern was to prevent any mixing or confusion between the divinely revealed words of the Quran and the words of the Prophet (Hadith) in a single text or document.
• Focus on the Quran: The early Caliphs wanted Muslims to focus solely on the Quran as the primary and sufficient source of law and guidance at that time.
• Preventing Fabrication: The leaders recognized the potential for false Hadith to be circulated for political or social gain, which could fragment the community. 

This ban was an official policy that continued for approximately one hundred years, until the Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz ordered the first official compilation of Hadith around 717-720 CE, when the fear of losing knowledge and an increase in fabrications became a greater concern. 

Connection to Modern Issues in Saudi Arabia

Critics of contemporary Islamic practices, including those in Saudi Arabia, argue that the reliance on vast Hadith collections and subsequent scholarly interpretations (fiqh) has led to precisely the kind of confusion and sectarianism that the early Caliphs feared. 

• Divergent Interpretations: The existence of a massive body of Hadith has resulted in diverse interpretations and the formation of different schools of law (like the Hanbali school dominant in Saudi Arabia), leading to disagreements on key issues like human rights.
• Basis for Controversial Laws: The Saudi legal system uses specific Hadith interpretations to justify laws that critics argue violate the Quran’s core principles of justice and human rights (such as issues related to women’s rights and the death penalty for apostasy).
• “Book Besides the Book of Allah”: The argument is made that adhering strictly to the Hadith collections as a secondary, co-equal source of law effectively creates “another book besides the book of Allah,” a practice explicitly warned against by some early companions and Hadith themselves. 

Thus, the historical decision not to compile Hadith immediately after the Prophet’s death is seen by some as a validation of their view that relying on Hadith has, indeed, contributed to many of the “troublesome” aspects of contemporary Islamic law and practice.”

Explain the ‘tech-washing’ and ‘sportswashing’ aspects of Saudi investment in tech

GoogleAI Mode: “‘Sportswashing’ is the practice of using high-profile sports to enhance a country’s reputation and distract from human rights violations. Similarly, ‘tech-washing’ is the use of strategic investments in technology to project an image of a modern, innovative nation while downplaying or concealing a poor human rights record. Both are tactics deployed by Saudi Arabia to further its geopolitical and economic goals under its “Vision 2030” plan. 

Sportswashing

Saudi Arabia has spent billions of dollars on acquiring, hosting, and investing in major sporting events and entities to improve its image. 

Tactics and examples:

• Acquiring teams: In 2021, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) acquired English football club Newcastle United. By July 2024, the PIF had increased its stake to 85%, solidifying control.
• Hosting tournaments: Saudi Arabia has hosted the Spanish football Super Cup, the Dakar Rally, and Formula One races in Jeddah. It is also scheduled to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
• Creating new ventures: The Kingdom launched the LIV Golf tour in 2022, which attracted top players from the PGA Tour with lucrative contracts. In 2023, the PGA Tour and LIV merged, giving the PIF significant influence in professional golf.
• Recruiting star athletes: The Saudi Pro League has attracted high-profile players, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.
• Sponsoring events: State-owned oil company Saudi Aramco signed a long-term global sponsorship deal with Formula One in 2020.

Tech-washing

Following its success with sportswashing, Saudi Arabia has applied the same strategy to technology. By positioning itself as a tech hub, the Kingdom aims to attract investment and project a progressive image. 

Tactics and examples:

• Investing in tech giants: The PIF, and entities it controls, have invested in leading tech firms and venture capital funds, including a significant stake in X (formerly Twitter) and investments in Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI.
• Developing tech-focused initiatives: Vision 2030 includes initiatives to promote emerging technologies like AI, cloud computing, and gaming.
• Creating tech megaprojects: The planned smart city of NEOM is a centerpiece of the strategy, with critics labeling parts of it, such as “The Line,” a “surveillance city” due to its incorporation of digital tracking systems.
• Hosting tech conferences: Saudi Arabia hosted the United Nations’ Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in December 2024, a move criticized by human rights organizations given the Kingdom’s record of digital rights violations.
• Partnering with Western firms: Human Rights Watch has criticized Microsoft for expanding its cloud data center in Saudi Arabia, noting the high risk of human rights abuses. 

Consequences and criticism

Human rights groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch argue that these initiatives, whether in sports or technology, are used to legitimize an authoritarian regime and distract from its human rights abuses. Critics also cite the significant financial influence over tech platforms, the potential for surveillance via tech projects, and the continued repression of online dissent within the Kingdom as reasons for concern.”

On a scale of 1 out 5, how likely is Saudi Arabia to use technology to violate human rights?

GoogleAI Mode: “Saudi Arabia is widely considered likely to use technology to violate human rights, with many experts and human rights organizations placing this likelihood at 4 out of 5 (Likely) or higher.

Staying informed about human rights concerns related to the use of technology by governments globally is important. Organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch often report on these issues, providing analysis and documentation of potential violations in various countries.”

On a scale of 1 out 5 with 5 being one of the worst, does Saudi Arabia violate human rights?

GoogleAI Mode: “Saudi Arabia has a widely documented record of human rights violations, leading to a consensus among international human rights organizations that it ranks at 5 out of 5 (One of the worst) on a scale measuring such violations.

Human rights groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have extensively documented a pattern of severe abuses, including:

• Suppression of Free Speech: Severe penalties for peaceful dissent, including long prison sentences and even the death penalty for social media activity.
• Lack of Fair Trials: Unfair trials, arbitrary detentions, and the systematic use of torture in detention centers.
• Women’s Rights: Significant restrictions on women’s rights, though some reforms have been introduced recently.
• Death Penalty and Executions: High rates of executions, often following unfair trials.

For more detailed information and documentation of these issues, you can consult the reports from leading human rights organizations:

• Amnesty International
• Human Rights Watch”

What types of technology are concerning?

GoogleAI Mode: “For governments with poor human rights records, the most concerning types of technology are those used for surveillance, control, and censorship. This includes advanced digital tools that can be used to monitor citizens, suppress dissent, and manipulate public information. 

Surveillance and tracking technologies

These technologies can be used to track, monitor, and identify individuals, undermining privacy and freedom of association. 

• Spyware: Highly invasive spyware, like Pegasus, can be covertly installed on a person’s phone, giving an attacker unlimited access to messages, calls, contacts, and location data.
• Facial recognition and biometrics: Biometric surveillance systems, including facial recognition, allow for mass surveillance and tracking, often without people’s consent. Once compromised, biometric data cannot be changed, creating long-term security risks.
• Drones: Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be used for surveillance and have been associated with human rights violations due to a lack of transparency and accountability. 

Artificial intelligence (AI)

The rapid advancement of AI creates a range of new human rights risks, from bias in automated systems to the potential for autonomous weapons. 

• Algorithmic bias: AI systems are trained on vast datasets that often reflect existing societal biases. This can lead to discrimination against marginalized groups in areas like hiring, policing, and welfare services.
• Automated decision-making: Governments are increasingly using AI to automate decisions in public services, policing, and criminal justice. Without proper oversight, this can lead to unfair and discriminatory outcomes.
• Autonomous weapons: The development of AI-enabled autonomous weapons systems raises ethical concerns and potential violations of international humanitarian law. 

Digital communication and information technologies

These tools can be used to manipulate information and suppress freedom of expression. 

• Content moderation: While AI can help with content moderation on platforms like X, it can also inadvertently suppress legitimate forms of expression due to a lack of understanding of context and nuance.
• Disinformation campaigns: The use of social media bots and disinformation campaigns by state actors can manipulate public opinion and undermine democratic processes.
• Internet controls: Technology can enable censorship through internet shutdowns, network slowdowns, and filtering of online content, restricting access to information and silencing dissent. 

Dual-use technologies

Many technologies, known as “dual-use,” are developed for civilian purposes but have military or surveillance applications. 

• Data centers and cloud infrastructure: While essential for modern services, these can be exploited by governments to gain access to citizens’ data for surveillance.
• Software and hardware: Technologies for filtering content or intercepting communications can be sold by companies to repressive regimes, enabling human rights abuses. 

For governments like Saudi Arabia, access to these technologies is particularly concerning given their documented history of using such tools to target and repress human rights activists, journalists, and dissidents.”

What tech has been used for surveillance in Saudi Arabia?

GoogleAI Mode: “Saudi Arabia has used various technologies for surveillance and repression, with documented cases involving sophisticated commercial spyware, social media platform infiltration, and state-developed monitoring applications. 

Commercial Spyware

Saudi operatives have repeatedly used advanced, commercially available spyware to target the mobile phones of dissidents, activists, and journalists. 

• Pegasus: Developed by the Israeli firm NSO Group, Pegasus spyware has been documented in numerous cases of targeting. Once installed (often via “zero-click” exploits that require no user interaction), it provides full access to a device’s data, microphone, and camera. Targets have included the family of Jamal Khashoggi, a New York Times journalist, and an Amnesty International staff member.
• Predator: Reports from late 2021 and the “Predator Files” investigation revealed that Saudi authorities likely purchased and used Predator spyware from Cytrox, a North Macedonia-based company.
• Hacking Team Spyware: Saudi Arabia is also believed to have used spyware from other private firms like Hacking Team and QuaDream. 

Social Media Infiltration

The Saudi government engaged in a systematic effort to infiltrate social media platforms to identify anonymous critics.

• X (formerly Twitter) Spy Ring: In a high-profile U.S. federal case, two former Twitter employees were charged with and one convicted of acting as agents for Saudi Arabia. They accessed the private data of thousands of users (email addresses, phone numbers, IP addresses) and provided them to Saudi officials, leading to arrests and torture.
• Coordinated Propaganda: The government has used networks of “inauthentic accounts” and bots to spread pro-government propaganda and launch harassment campaigns against critics, effectively controlling the online narrative. 

Government-Developed Applications and Infrastructure

The Saudi government also employs its own technology for surveillance. 

• “Kollona Amn” App: This government-run app encourages citizens to report on others for alleged crimes, including online criticism, essentially creating a system of state-sanctioned citizen surveillance.
• “Safe City” Platforms: In partnership with technology firms like IBM, Saudi Arabia has developed “safe city” platforms that utilize facial recognition infrastructure and predictive policing tools, which have been used to target marginalized communities and suppress dissent. 

These examples demonstrate a pervasive use of technology, often acquired from global tech companies, to monitor and repress individuals who criticize the government both domestically and abroad.”

How might U.S. national security be impacted by Saudi Arabia’s investments in X and AI?

GoogleAI Mode: “Saudi Arabia’s investments in X and xAI could impact U.S. national security in two primary, conflicting ways: by potentially strengthening a key U.S. ally and fostering a “golden era” of cooperation, or by creating risks regarding sensitive user data, potential technology transfer to foreign adversaries like China, and foreign influence over a major communications platform.

Potential National Security Risks

• Access to Sensitive U.S. Data: X holds a massive amount of U.S. personal data (IP addresses, geolocation, communications). Given Saudi Arabia’s documented history of using the former Twitter to surveil dissidents, there is concern the government could pressure X for access to this data, compromising the safety of U.S. citizens and officials.
• Technology Transfer to China: The U.S. is in a strategic “race” with China over AI dominance. A major concern among some U.S. analysts is that advanced U.S.-made AI chips from companies like Nvidia and AMD, which Saudi Arabia is seeking for its data centers, could be diverted or their capabilities accessed by China due to the Kingdom’s existing ties to Chinese tech firms.
• Foreign Influence and Information Warfare: The substantial financial stake could grant Saudi Arabia leverage to influence content moderation policies or promote state-backed propaganda campaigns on X, potentially interfering with U.S. politics and public discourse.
• Creating “Sovereign AI States”: By helping Saudi Arabia build its own advanced AI infrastructure, the U.S. could be accelerating the rise of “sovereign AI states” that are no longer dependent on U.S. intelligence or technology, potentially undermining America’s long-term strategic advantage. 

Potential National Security Benefits (U.S. Government View)

• Binding Saudi Arabia to the U.S. Orbit: The U.S. administration’s current approach is that these AI and defense deals are a geopolitical chess move designed to bind the Saudis to the U.S. sphere of influence, preventing them from falling further into China’s orbit.
• Economic Ties and Investment: The deals involve billions of dollars in Saudi investments in U.S. AI data centers and energy infrastructure, which the U.S. government views as a major economic benefit and a strategic priority.
• Shared Security Interests: The U.S. and Saudi Arabia share common concerns for regional security and stability, and the new partnerships are seen as a way to enhance defense cooperation and address mutual threats. 

Ultimately, the impact on U.S. national security is seen as a high-stakes gamble, balancing immediate economic and alliance benefits against significant long-term risks of data exploitation and technology diffusion to potentially hostile actors.”