examining the potential challenges | 10.1163/22131035-14020001 5 human decision-makers. Furthermore, it proposes measures to mitigate risk associated with the partial use of ai. Section 5 makes concluding observations. For the purposes of this study, reference is made to the 1954 Convention, as well as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (unhcr) Handbook on the Protection of Stateless Persons (Handbook on Statelessness).13 Although a specific international treaty on ai and human rights is not yet in force, reference will be made to core international human rights instruments, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (iccpr) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (crc). 2 Exploring Core Concepts on Statelessness and ai 2.1 Definition of Stateless Person and Consequences of Statelessness A stateless person ‘means a person who is not considered as a national by any state under the operation of its law’.14 Moreover, this status arises from not only legislation, but also regulations, case law, etc, it encompasses a question of fact and law. Therefore, even when an individual acquires nationality automatically under the law, it is ultimately the state’s position – rather than the law itself – that is decisive in determining whether the individual is considered a national.15 Statelessness is becoming a growing human rights issue globally as it affects millions of people.16 Stateless persons are at heightened vulnerability due to the absence of a nationality and if they are not recognised and protected, they are prone to myriad human rights violations which can include indefinite or unnecessary detention, torture, xenophobic attacks, enslavement, family separation, and inadequate housing and health care, among others.17 13 14 15 16 17 Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, opened for signature 28 September 1954, entered into force 6 June 1960, 360 unts 117; United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (unhcr), ‘Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons under the 1954 Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons’(Handbook on Statelessness), Geneva (2014). Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons (1954 Convention), Art.1(1). Ibid, paras. 22–24. Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (isi), ‘Statelessness in numbers: 2020 An overview and analysis of global statistics’ August 2020 <https://files.institutesi.org/ISI_statistics _analysis_2020.pdf> accessed 30 September 2025. Kristy Belton, ‘Statelessness and Economic and Social Rights’ in The State of Economic and Social Human Rights: A Global Overview (Cambridge University Press, 2013) 221; Handbook on Statelessness, (n 13) at paras 104, 311. International Human Rights Law Review (2025) 1–31