Global Dialogue on AI Governance launched at United Nations

United Nations: The Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence (AI) Governance was launched at the United Nations.

“The question is no longer whether AI will transform our world — it already is,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the High-level Multi-Stakeholder Informal Meeting on Thursday to Launch the Global Dialogue on AI Governance.

“The question is whether we will govern this transformation together — or let it govern us,” he said.

Recalling that one year ago, the Global Digital Compact, the first universal agreement on AI governance, was adopted at the United Nations, Guterres said the cornerstones of a global AI ecosystem were laid today that can keep pace with the fastest-moving technology in human history, Xinhua news agency reported.

The system rests on three fundamental pillars — policy, science and capacity, he said. “That is multilateralism at its best — agile, inclusive, and anchored in shared responsibility.”

The UN chief noted that the goals of the Global Dialogue are clear: to help build safe, secure and trustworthy AI systems; to promote interoperability between governance regimes; and to encourage open innovation accessible to all.

The United Nations offers a uniquely universal platform for such global cooperation, and for the first time, every country will have a seat at the table of AI, he said.

According to Guterres, the Global Dialogue will take into account AI’s implications in all its dimensions — social and economic, ethical and technical, cultural and linguistic, and it will complement existing efforts around the world, including at the OECD, the G7 and regional organizations, and provide an inclusive, stable home for AI governance coordination efforts.

“In short, this is about creating a space where governments, industry and civil society can advance common solutions together,” he said.

The creation, within the United Nations, of the International Independent Scientific Panel on AI represents another milestone, said the UN chief.

On capacity, Guterres said he recently submitted a report on financing options for AI capacity building, which sets out practical pathways to narrow the AI divide.

The three pillars of policy, science and capacity are crucial to providing clarity, building trust, reducing inequalities and accelerating progress for all, he said.

“The printing press opened minds. The Industrial Revolution reshaped societies. The internet connected lives across continents,” said Annalena Baerbock, president of the UN General Assembly, at the meeting.

The Global Digital Compact is the world’s first common agreement on how AI should be governed, and building on that, the International Independent Scientific Panel on AI and the Global Dialogue on AI Governance were created, she said.

“The objective of this Dialogue is to ensure every country, large and small, has a voice in shaping this technology,” she said.

Baerbock warned that the AI market is worth trillions of US dollars, but its benefits are concentrated, with most of the world, especially the Global South, left on the sidelines.

AI’s enormous appetite for energy, unless met with clean power, could worsen the climate crisis instead of helping to solve it, she said.

“We must harness its potential, minimise its risks, and equalise its reach,” she said.

The high-level meeting, held on the sidelines of the ongoing High-level Week of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, brings together member states, observers, UN specialized agencies and diverse stakeholders to launch the Global Dialogue on AI Governance and explore key dimensions of inclusive and accountable AI governance.

IANS