<P> On October 11 , 2017 , Sophia was introduced to the United Nations with a brief conversation with the United Nations Deputy Secretary - General , Amina J. Mohammed . On October 25 , at the Future Investment Summit in Riyadh , the robot was granted Saudi Arabian citizenship , becoming the first robot ever to have a nationality . This attracted controversy as some commentators wondered if this implied that Sophia could vote or marry , or whether a deliberate system shutdown could be considered murder . Social media users used Sophia 's citizenship to criticize Saudi Arabia 's human rights record . As explained by Ali Al - Ahmed , director of the Institute for Gulf Affairs , `` Women ( in Saudi Arabia ) have since committed suicide because they could n't leave the house , and Sophia is running around ( without a male guardian ) . Saudi law does n't allow non-Muslims to get citizenship . Did Sophia convert to Islam ? What is the religion of this Sophia and why is n't she wearing hijab ? If she applied for citizenship as a human she would n't get it . '' In December 2017 , Sophia 's creator David Hanson said in an interview that Sophia will use her citizenship to advocate for women 's rights in her now country of citizenship ; Newsweek criticized that `` What ( Hanson ) means , exactly , is unclear ''. . </P>
<P> On October 11 , 2017 , Sophia was introduced to the United Nations with a brief conversation with the United Nations Deputy Secretary - General , Amina J. Mohammed . On October 25 , at the Future Investment Summit in Riyadh , the robot was granted Saudi Arabian citizenship , becoming the first robot ever to have a nationality . This attracted controversy as some commentators wondered if this implied that Sophia could vote or marry , or whether a deliberate system shutdown could be considered murder . Social media users used Sophia 's citizenship to criticize Saudi Arabia 's human rights record . As explained by Ali Al - Ahmed , director of the Institute for Gulf Affairs , `` Women ( in Saudi Arabia ) have since committed suicide because they could n't leave the house , and Sophia is running around ( without a male guardian ) . Saudi law does n't allow non-Muslims to get citizenship . Did Sophia convert to Islam ? What is the religion of this Sophia and why is n't she wearing hijab ? If she applied for citizenship as a human she would n't get it . '' In December 2017 , Sophia 's creator David Hanson said in an interview that Sophia will use her citizenship to advocate for women 's rights in her now country of citizenship ; Newsweek criticized that `` What ( Hanson ) means , exactly , is unclear ''. . </P>
when did sophia the robot get her citizenship
when did sophia the robot get her citizenship
October 25
October 25