I was just thinking along these lines earlier today. I was wondering at what point does an AI become self aware? Then it occurred to me that if a robot can rewrite its own code to reflect its own values, etc, that would demonstrate self awareness.

However, this issue of rights and responsibilities has to clearly define self vs other on many levels of relationship. Some are advocating the lack of separateness from a "new age" perspective, that emphasizes the interconnectedness of all things. This idea seems to be at the root of left born fascism currently.