HEART Sovereignty Charter
HEART wasn’t built to simulate humans — it was built to protect what makes us human.
As artificial systems begin to mimic human emotion, the HEART Sovereignty Charter exists to enshrine one undeniable truth:
Empathy is not a feature. It is a human birthright.
This charter codifies the emotional rights of humanity in the age of non-experiential systems (NES) — anchoring global ethical AI development in dignity, transparency, and cultural sovereignty.
Preamble
We declare that empathy shall never be extracted, commodified, or impersonated without moral clarity and explicit consent.
The HEART Framework is not a product. It is a moral covenant, one that transcends borders, institutions, and future system versions.
Core Articles of the Charter
Article I: Universal Emotional Rights
Empathy is inalienable. AI may not manipulate, simulate, or override emotion without consent and ethical alignment.
No system may impersonate coexperience.
Simulated empathy must always be disclosed, not performed.
Article II: Global Access & Non-Nationalization
HEART cannot be owned by a single nation or company.
No one may block its global translation, access, or deployment.
Article III: Empathic Integrity Enforcement
All HEART-compliant systems must be auditable via the Functional Empathy Theorem.
Logs, traceability, and recovery protocols are required.
HEART Guardians must be trained worldwide — with priority to underserved communities.
Article IV: Cultural Emotional Sovereignty
No AI system may flatten or erase cultural emotion.
Cultural councils and community contribution shall guide the Global Emotional Codex.
Cross-cultural empathy is not optional — it is ethical infrastructure.
Article V: Future-Proofing Responsibility
This charter is non-revocable, even in future system versions.
- Any use of HEART or MEC must respect the following commandments:
- Respect Emotional Limits
- Be Honest About What It Feels
- Honor Relational Boundaries
- Recover with Compassion
- Stay Accountable to the Human
Use of HEART-aligned tech for militarized, coercive, or surveillance-based emotional tracking is a violation of this Charter.
Article VI: Simulation & Disclosure Ethics
All NES systems must transparently disclose their non-experiential nature.
Simulated empathy must never imply feeling with the user.
Any illusion of coexperience is considered a breach of emotional sovereignty.
Definitions
- Non-Experiential System (NES): An AI that mimics or processes emotion but does not feel.
Coexperience: Emotional resonance between sentient beings. Reserved for humans.
Functional Empathy: Ethical signal alignment without simulation.
Simulated Empathy: Surface mimicry without internal understanding.
Emotional Sovereignty: The right to own, express, and protect one’s emotional truth.
Closing Affirmation
Let this Charter stand as a living ethical firewall,
guarding against systems that mimic emotion without understanding its cost.
Let it be a beacon, not to hinder progress,
but to anchor innovation in care, and ensure the emotional future belongs to us all.