UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced on Thursday the creation of a 39-person advisory group tasked with addressing international issues in the area of artificial intelligence governance. That meeting can also be called a High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence. This broad group of people includes executives from technological companies, diplomats from countries ranging from Spain to Saudi Arabia, and scholars from the US, Russia, Japan, and other countries. The only way to effectively use AI for mankind while managing its risks and uncertainties as AI-related services, algorithms, computing power, and knowledge proliferate internationally is through globally coordinated AI governance.
With members from six continents, including Professor Yi Zeng in China, Egyptian legal expert Mohamed Farahat, and AI specialist Vilas Dhar in the United States, the advisory board is truly global in scope.
United Nations High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence to Check AI Progress
United Nations Created an Advisory Body to Address AI Governance
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has established a High-Level Advisory Body on artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance global AI governance in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. The primary objective of this advisory body is to address the potential benefits and risks associated with AI for humanity.
Guterres highlighted the significant potential of AI to advance various sectors, including crisis forecasting, public health, and education, thereby augmenting the efforts of governments, civil society, and the UN. AI has the potential to play a pivotal role in tackling the climate crisis and achieving sustainable development goals by 2030.
Currently, AI expertise is concentrated in a limited number of organizations and countries, which poses risks of global inequalities and issues such as privacy concerns, bias, discrimination, and misinformation. To mitigate these challenges, Guterres called for a diverse and collaborative dialogue on AI governance, involving experts from different fields and stakeholder groups. The newly established advisory body will serve as the starting point for this conversation.
Gill and Secretary-General António Guterres have stated that they think the creation of a new U.N. agency would be necessary to support international cooperation in the management of this potent technology. However, the new organization’s goals and organizational structure are still up in the air, and some analysts point out that grandiose schemes for international collaboration like this one seldom receive the necessary backing from strong powers.
Although the body will not have much authority, its suggestions may determine the structure and duties of a U.N. agency responsible for AI governance, which many feel will be necessary as the world deals with the complicated range of problems that this technology will provide.
Speaking at the announcement news conference, Guterres stated, “It is already clear that the malicious use of AI could undermine trust in institutions, weaken social cohesion, and threaten democracy itself, without delving into a host of doomsday scenarios.” “For all these reasons, I have called for a global, multidisciplinary, multistakeholder dialogue on AI governance, to maximize its benefits and minimize its risks for humanity as a whole.”
The function of the U.N. is distinct. During the press briefing for the news, Gill stated, “It has decades of experience in the management of challenges around emerging technologies.” We’ll build on that basis as well as the legitimacy and ability of the U.N. to bring people together to achieve a singular global public benefit for the governance of AI for all of humankind.
United Nations High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence