The Entity Types and Philosophical Issues of Natural Human, Digital Human, and Robot from a Cyberism Perspective

With the development of the Internet and artificial intelligence, cyberspace has become increasingly intertwined with human life. Consequently, the boundaries of human existence and identity are being reconsidered and redefined. This paper examines the entity types and philosophical implications of different forms of “humans” and “quasi-humans” (including humanoid machines and virtual humans) in the context of the cyber age, and discusses their relevance to philosophical inquiry into the nature of the “human.” First, the paper reviews existing notions of the natural human, digital human, and robot. Drawing on cyberism—the study of the relationship between humans and cyberspace—it classifies different forms of human entities into five categories: the biological human, the cyborg human, the digital twin human, the virtual digital human, and the robot. Focusing on the “quasi-human” categories other than the biological human, the paper then investigates philosophical issues concerning ontology, identity, ethics, and rights, mortality and persistence, subjectivity and agency, and authenticity and simulation. This study aims to deepen understanding of human existence in the digital era and to explore the ethical and philosophical challenges posed by emerging types of human.