UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Convergent perils: luminaries against human ethics being outsourced to AI

Q1. With reference to the Rome Declaration for an Unarmed and Disarming Peace (2026) and its antecedents, consider the following statements: 1. The 2026 Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear War built upon an earlier 2025 Nobel Laureate Assembly for the Prevention of Nuclear War held at the University of Chicago. 2. The Rome Declaration was adopted exclusively by Nobel Peace Prize laureates, with no signatories drawn from scientific disciplines. 3. Unlike the 2023 Bletchley Declaration, whose focus was civilian AI safety, the Rome Declaration extends to demanding human control over nuclear and autonomous-weapon decisions. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The 2026 Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear War built upon an earlier 2025 Nobel Laureate Assembly for the Prevention of Nuclear War held at the University of Chicago.
  2. The Rome Declaration was adopted exclusively by Nobel Peace Prize laureates, with no signatories drawn from scientific disciplines.
  3. Unlike the 2023 Bletchley Declaration, whose focus was civilian AI safety, the Rome Declaration extends to demanding human control over nuclear and autonomous-weapon decisions.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q2. The signing of the Rome Declaration for an Unarmed and Disarming Peace (16 July 2026) concluded which flagship gathering?

  • A. Global Dialogue on AI Governance
  • B. AI Safety Summit, New Delhi
  • C. Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear War
  • D. Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs

Q3. Nobel Peace laureate Maria Ressa, a signatory of the Rome Declaration, remarked that the world had already experienced its 'Trinity-test moment' with AI. The original 'Trinity test' most precisely refers to:

  • A. the first Soviet thermonuclear bomb test of 1953
  • B. the first detonation of a nuclear weapon, conducted by the United States in July 1945
  • C. the first successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile
  • D. the naval standoff of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis

Q4. The Rome Declaration was signed by both Nobel Physics laureates (e.g., David Gross) and a Nobel Peace laureate (Maria Ressa). Unlike the Physics prize, the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded by which body?

  • A. the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
  • B. the Karolinska Institute
  • C. the Swedish Academy
  • D. the Norwegian Nobel Committee

Q5. The concept of 'meaningful human control' was first introduced into international discussions on lethal autonomous weapons in 2013, within the framework of which instrument?

  • A. the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)
  • B. the Convention on Cluster Munitions
  • C. the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW)
  • D. the Arms Trade Treaty

Q6. The Soviet officer whose scepticism averted a mistaken nuclear response during the false-alarm incident of 26 September 1983 was:

  • A. Vasili Arkhipov
  • B. Stanislav Petrov
  • C. Nikolai Ogarkov
  • D. Yuri Andropov

Q7. Regarding Pope Leo XIV's encyclical Magnifica Humanitas (2026), which of the following are correctly identified? 1. It is the first encyclical of Pope Leo XIV. 2. It was signed on 15 May 2026, the 135th anniversary of Leo XIII's Rerum Novarum. 3. Its stated subject is safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence. 4. It was jointly issued with the 200-plus Nobel laureates as co-signatories. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. It is the first encyclical of Pope Leo XIV.
  2. It was signed on 15 May 2026, the 135th anniversary of Leo XIII's Rerum Novarum.
  3. Its stated subject is safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence.
  4. It was jointly issued with the 200-plus Nobel laureates as co-signatories.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q8. In early May 2026, Pope Leo XIV approved the creation of which body, composed of representatives from seven departments of the Roman Curia, to address artificial intelligence?

  • A. the Pontifical Academy for Life
  • B. the Dicastery for Communication
  • C. an Interdicasterial Commission on Artificial Intelligence
  • D. the Pontifical Council for Culture

Q9. RAND's 2025 study 'On the Extinction Risk from Artificial Intelligence' identified the capabilities a hypothetical rogue AI would need to threaten human extinction. Which of the following are correctly identified as such capabilities? 1. Integration with, and control of, key cyber-physical systems. 2. The ability to survive without human maintainers. 3. Possession of an objective to cause human extinction. 4. Control of a majority vote in the UN Security Council to authorise weapons use. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. Integration with, and control of, key cyber-physical systems.
  2. The ability to survive without human maintainers.
  3. Possession of an objective to cause human extinction.
  4. Control of a majority vote in the UN Security Council to authorise weapons use.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q10. With reference to global AI-governance frameworks and India's position, consider the following statements: 1. The 2023 Bletchley Declaration on AI safety was signed by 28 governments, including both India and China. 2. The AI Safety Summit was first hosted at Bletchley Park (2023), followed by Seoul (2024), Paris (2025) and New Delhi (2026). 3. India voted in favour of the December 2023 UN General Assembly resolution seeking to restrict lethal autonomous weapons. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The 2023 Bletchley Declaration on AI safety was signed by 28 governments, including both India and China.
  2. The AI Safety Summit was first hosted at Bletchley Park (2023), followed by Seoul (2024), Paris (2025) and New Delhi (2026).
  3. India voted in favour of the December 2023 UN General Assembly resolution seeking to restrict lethal autonomous weapons.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3