The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has ushered in a new era of technological transformation, reshaping human life, knowledge production, and decision-making across diverse fields. From healthcare and education to economics, governance, and scientific research, AI-driven technologies are creating unprecedented opportunities while simultaneously raising complex ethical, legal, and societal questions. These developments have profound implications for Islamic jurisprudence, particularly in addressing emerging issues that require a nuanced understanding of technological realities and their implications for individuals and society.
In this evolving context, contemporary Islamic juristic reasoning (ijtihād) assumes renewed significance in engaging with unprecedented challenges arising from AI and its expanding applications. Addressing these developments requires more than conventional legal analysis; it calls for a dynamic integration of juristic principles, an accurate understanding of technological realities, and a holistic consideration of the objectives of Islamic law (Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah). As a comprehensive framework for safeguarding human welfare, justice, dignity, and the common good, Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah offers valuable methodological and ethical guidance for evaluating AI-related developments, identifying their potential benefits and harms, and formulating responsible responses to contemporary challenges.
Indeed, the applications of artificial intelligence have generated a new reality in which algorithms intersect with sensitive domains such as fatwā issuance, Islamic finance, institutional governance, and decision-making. This, in turn, raises deep methodological matters for Islamic jurisprudence, calling for the revitalization of its ijtihād-based tools in a manner that aligns with the nature of these transformations. In this regard, the Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah assume a central role in activating ijtihād, as they constitute a comprehensive methodological framework capable of accommodating the developments of artificial intelligence and addressing its challenges. Through their universal principles, Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah provides a guiding structure that regulates the process of ijtihād and directs it towards the realization of benefits and the prevention of harms, thereby preserving a balanced relationship between constants and variables within an ever-evolving digital context. They thus serve as an effective analytical tool that can be employed to ground the engagement with artificial intelligence applications within the normative framework of Islamic values.
In response to these contemporary challenges and in pursuit of exploring their future implications, the Department of Fiqh and Usul al-Fiqh at the AbdulHamid AbuSulayman Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, International Islamic University Malaysia, is organizing the 7th International Conference on Islamic Jurisprudence 2026 on the theme “Artificial Intelligence in the Light of Maqasid Shariah: Contemporary Issues and Future Prospects.” The conference seeks to serve as a leading academic platform for interdisciplinary dialogue and for exploring avenues of integration between technological knowledge and the Islamic normative framework. It also reflects the department’s commitment to fulfilling the objectives of its academic programs by integrating the sciences of the Islamic intellectual heritage with the developments of contemporary knowledge.
Through renewed ijtihād and sustained legislative intellectual renewal, grounded in a Tawhidic Epistemology and driven by the aspiration to enhance the Ummatic Excellence as a community of stewardship and civilization, the conference aims to advance rigorous juristic discourse on artificial intelligence and the digital knowledge economy. It seeks to foster strong interdisciplinary engagement and to contribute to the formulation of well-grounded Shariah-based solutions that can meaningfully guide the optimal use of these technologies across all domains of contemporary life.