" .. Someone on death row is to understand that they have committed a deep wrong. If they are incapable of that self-realization, then punishment—especially death—loses much of its raison d'etre.<p>The other purpose of a public trial is to affirm to our polity that justice is being served. This also helps victims and their families get closure and move on from the incident. Seeing an AI sentenced for its crimes does meet this purpose.<p>"<p>I don't see how. The purpose of punishment is to prevent other actors from committing similar crimes. If the AI cannot feel pain how would that prevent any other AI from committing similar actions?<p>What does it mean for "victims and their families get closure"? It means they won't be seeking revenge/punishment any more and thus will feel better.<p>But will it make them feel better if an AI program is (somehow) punished? Only if we can convince them that punishing the AI will cause the AI pain. So how would we punish an AI in a way that makes it feel pain?