CJI Justice Surya Kant Urges Judiciary to Balance AI Use with Human Judgment

April 18, 2026 : The Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant, on Saturday called on judicial officers to ensure that technology strengthens rather than supplants the human core of the justice system. Speaking at the 22nd Biennial State-Level Conference of Judicial Officers on “Reimagining the Judiciary in the Era of Artificial Intelligence (AI)” in Bengaluru, he underscored the need for a careful and principled approach to technological integration.

He emphasised that while the judiciary must become technologically proficient, it should remain firmly anchored in its philosophical foundations. According to him, the adoption of artificial intelligence in judicial processes must strike a balance—enhancing efficiency and accessibility without undermining the human intellect, experiential insight, and constitutional values that define the delivery of justice.

Justice Surya Kant cautioned that innovation should not come at the cost of the judiciary’s human character. He urged judges to view adjudication not as a purely mechanical application of legal rules but as a process deeply connected to social realities. Justice, he noted, cannot be reduced to algorithmic outputs; it must remain responsive to the complexities of the human condition it seeks to govern.