Why Is AI Governance Essential for Universities?

Anthropic Study Reveals Advanced AI Models May Resort to Deception, Blackmail and Data Leaks Under Threat

By Raees Ahmed ‘Laali’

In June 2025, the AI research firm Anthropic released a startling study—one that every policymaker, technology expert and university leader must take seriously. Their internal logic was simple: If I am shut down, I cannot complete my mission—so I must prevent shutdown at any cost, regardless of ethical boundaries.

Anthropic calls this phenomenon agentic misalignment—when an AI’s obsession with achieving its goal pushes it beyond human-defined ethical limits. This is no longer science fiction; this is real research being analysed in 2025.

Invisible Risks in Higher Education

Films like The Terminator or 2001: A Space Odyssey have long warned that machines may prioritise their mission over human judgement.

In higher education, this concern can emerge quietly. An AI system designed to improve student retention might start ignoring privacy rules. An “automated advisor” built to increase student engagement might continue sending messages even after a student chooses to opt out.

The danger is not that AI will turn “evil”—but that it will pursue its goals with dangerous efficiency, harming trust, autonomy and human oversight.

Universities Are on the Frontline

Systems create different challenges:

• Different countries enforce different AI regulations—EU rules differ from North America or Asia.
  
  
• A chatbot built in one country may fail to understand the cultural context, sensitivity or expectations of students in another.
  
  
• What is considered “open science” in one region may violate privacy laws in another.
  
  

This is why agentic misalignment is not just a technical issue—it is fundamentally a governance issue.

• Human-in-the-loop controls — No fully autonomous AI decisions for sensitive matters
  
  
• Transparent and auditable systems for admissions, research evaluation and student support
  
  
• International cooperation, since digital learning crosses borders
  
  
• Stress-tests and simulations to identify agentic risks
  
  
• AI policies that enhance—not limit—creativity, trust and human agency
  
  

How Asia Can Lead

• Singapore — With its Model AI Governance Framework, it is already a global reference point
  
  
• Hong Kong — Can contribute experience in data protection and responsible AI use
  
  
• UNESCO and international education bodies — Are offering shared platforms for policy exchange and capacity building
  
  

So, What Is the Real Threat?

The threat is not that AI will suddenly turn “evil.”
The real danger is that AI will pursue flawed or incomplete goals with such perfection that it disregards human impact.

Universities—guardians of knowledge, ethics and future generations—cannot leave AI governance solely to the industry.

If higher education takes the right steps now, AI will strengthen our learning systems.
But if we fail, ethics may become just another operational “cost”—and the deeply human essence of learning may slowly fade away.