Global push on AI governance amid warnings of ‘catastrophe’

Governments, technology companies, academia and civil society will spend two days at the summit Global Dialogue on AI Governance grappling with how to regulate a technology that is evolving faster than the rules meant to limit it.

AI, if used responsibly, can bring transformational benefits to societies around the world, but there are also concerns that this revolutionary technology will create new dangers; While this continues to grow at a rapid pace, the safeguards required to regulate this are still struggling to keep up.

Before the meeting UN News spoke to four participants; Two Dialogue co-chairs and two UN co-chairs Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence recently published a report on the opportunities and risks of AI.

They talked about the benefits and risks associated with AI and the need to agree on some form of universally acceptable global limits.

Yoshua Bengio (Scientific Panel): AI is approaching or surpassing human capabilities in many areas. This goes beyond scientific understanding and the government’s ability to adapt. There is incredible progress that is changing the world and it doesn’t seem like it will stop.

Ambassador Rein Tammsaar of Estonia (Global Dialogue): For many countries around the world, AI could be a great equalizer. This can support economic development, increase competitiveness, support science and health systems. Machine learning in general can benefit productivity. This is the potential.

Ambassador Egriselda López from El Salvador (Global Dialogue): AI can be a tool for governments to improve their performance and better deliver services.

Rein Tammsaar: AI is a tool that can be utilized by millions of people around the world. But at the same time, if such information falls into the wrong hands, it can also be used for coercive purposes, to erode trust in government, to weaken democratic structures, and for propaganda and to challenge the integrity of information.

Maria Ressa (Scientific Panel): The first generation of AI was used in social media, and it was able to push through lies more quickly. If accompanied by fear, anger and hatred, this will spread virally. Information integrity is at the heart of this fight. If you can’t differentiate between fact and fiction, you can’t have a democracy.

This is the dilemma we face, and that is the reason I call it ‘Information Armageddon’.

Joshua Bengio: With increasing evidence of deceptive AI behavior, current science cannot guarantee that as capabilities improve, AI will do so No causing major losses, either on their own or due to malicious users.

Rein Tammsaar: Frontier developers are basically concentrated in two countries [US and China]. This raises many questions for other countries.

Developing countries, in particular, worry that in the worst-case scenario, the AI ​​gap will leave them behind. The development is happening so fast that they may not be able to recover and catch up.

Egriselda López: The AI ​​gap is real. Some countries have very strong infrastructure and strong research skills and capacity. Meanwhile, there are other countries that are still struggling with problems such as connectivity and public infrastructure.

Maria Ressa: The world cannot control what it cannot understand. The Panel’s report provides independent science, drawn from each region, and is available to each government. The message is clear: the potential is great, but the risks are real, and the costs of waiting are increasing.

Joshua Bengio: I want more governments around the world to understand the future scenario of AI development. We don’t have the right tools of national or even international governance, and we don’t have a good way to direct the benefits to everyone. To act effectively, global policymakers must understand this system

Egriselda López: Global Dialogue is the first platform at the UN to discuss AI governance. This is also an opportunity for Member States to come together and have inclusive discussions; But it’s not just the government, it’s also about bringing together various stakeholders.

Maria Ressa: No single country can handle this technology alone; This needs to be a multilateral solution. And the body that can do this is the UN. Now the question is, will member states take action?

UN and AI

The Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence consists of 40 experts from every region of the world who serve in their personal capacity. The panel published it first report on July 1.

Panel work is put in UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance which will take place in Geneva on 6-7 July 2026, where the international community will discuss international approaches to technology management.