BUENOS AIRES — Argentine President Javier Milei stirred up a mix of excitement and alarm last month when he announced legislation to establish so-called “non-human corporations” powered by artificial intelligence — but a closer look reveals these companies would still need people involved in their operations.
In an op-ed published in the Financial Times, Milei outlined a new kind of business entity that could function without human employees, where AI systems and robots would make independent decisions in unpredictable situations. Multiple legal experts noted that if passed, Argentina would become the first nation to formally recognize a corporate category for AI-operated businesses.
“We are open for business,” Milei declared — a statement that drew sharp criticism from Israeli historian Yuval Noah Harari, who cautioned that granting AI too much authority could erode corporate accountability.
However, corporate attorneys say the reality is far less groundbreaking. The so-called “automated company” outlined in the proposed legislation — part of a broader effort to modernize and streamline Argentina’s corporate laws — would still be required to have a human administrator overseeing day-to-day operations. The bill also permits company leadership to use AI in decision-making, but does not relieve those administrators of responsibility for monitoring results.
Lawrence Cunningham, director of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware, said it would be “too wild a first step to dispense with human agency entirely,” though he acknowledged the proposal is bold.
“We’re not changing the world here so much as we’re recognizing that you might run a business without any HR,” Cunningham said. “It’s the beginning of something.”
Diego Duprat, a law professor and one of the bill’s co-authors, pointed out that automated companies already exist in certain forms today, citing AI-assisted cashier-less grocery stores as an example.
Under the bill, companies would be held legally responsible for any damages caused by AI or algorithmic systems.
A representative from the presidential spokesperson’s office confirmed that no companies or investment commitments are currently tied to the bill. “What is happening is that we are proposing something innovative, aimed at making Argentina an attractive jurisdiction for the establishment of automated companies,” the representative said. “This project is key to creating better conditions for attracting investment.”
Milei, who has worked to bring down inflation and court foreign investors, has repeatedly promoted Argentina as a future hub for artificial intelligence, pointing to the cold climate and energy resources of Patagonia as ideal conditions for data centers. OpenAI and Sur Energy announced plans in October for a data center representing an investment of up to $25 billion.
Maria Gisele Cano, a corporate attorney in the province of Buenos Aires, said simply having a law that acknowledges a company’s core use of AI could attract investors. She said she has already fielded more than a dozen inquiries from entrepreneurs both inside Argentina and internationally. “These companies will have a clearer and more predictable framework for conducting their operations in this environment,” she said.
Yonathan Arbel, a professor who studies AI at the University of Alabama’s law school, said Argentina could gain a “huge competitive advantage” by creating a welcoming environment for AI-based businesses. He suggested the bill could be strengthened by requiring AI agents to have a digital ID for interactions with individuals and other companies.
The proposal also opens the door for companies structured as decentralized autonomous organizations, known as DAOs, which are built on blockchain technology and allow members to vote on decisions using digital tokens.
Argentina ranks among the top cryptocurrency markets in Latin America. Ricardo Mihura Estrada, former president of Bitcoin Argentina, said the bill’s requirement that token users be identified and registered poses a significant challenge for an industry that has long prized anonymity. “I think it’s well intentioned, but I see difficulty in it being adopted in the blockchain world,” he said.
The presidential spokesperson’s office responded that identifying token users is a basic security requirement, noting: “DAOs that prefer to maintain a completely anonymous structure may continue to operate outside this regime, but they will not gain access to the legal benefits it offers.”
Milei’s vision for automated companies echoes ideas expressed by OpenAI’s CEO, who said in 2024 that AI could enable a single-employee company to reach a $1 billion valuation.
Several U.S. states, including Texas and Utah, have already established legal frameworks for businesses to test AI systems, according to Emerald Greywoode, a researcher at the Weinberg Center. Those frameworks can include requirements for greater human oversight during the early stages of AI testing.
Experts say current AI technology is not yet sophisticated enough to make fully autonomous business decisions. Still, entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley are increasingly redirecting budgets away from hiring staff and toward AI computing power, according to Lan Xuezhao, managing partner at Basis Set Ventures, which invests in AI startups. She noted that AI entrepreneurs are most focused on access to computing power, chips, and energy costs, and that lighter regulatory requirements could become appealing as the U.S. and Europe tighten their rules around AI.
Even so, Lan said the bill alone is unlikely to transform Argentina into a global AI hub. “The most important thing is if the talent goes to Argentina,” she said. “People will follow.”
