UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasizes the urgent need for a unified international approach to regulate artificial intelligence, highlighting the importance of inclusivity, capacity-building, and ethical considerations.
In a compelling address at the 3rd AI Summit in Paris on February 11, 2025, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged world leaders to take swift and coordinated action to govern artificial intelligence (AI). He called for the immediate establishment of an international scientific panel to develop a common understanding of AI’s risks, benefits, capabilities, and opportunities.
Guterres highlighted the Global Digital Compact, adopted at the previous year’s Summit of the Future, as the first universal agreement on AI governance. He emphasized that this compact aligns global efforts to ensure AI serves humanity, rather than the other way around. He also stressed the importance of inclusivity, stating that member states have agreed to establish a global dialogue within the United Nations to ensure all countries have a voice in shaping the future of AI.
Addressing disparities in AI development, the Secretary-General called for increased investment in AI capacity-building for developing nations. He underscored the need for concerted efforts to build sustainable digital infrastructure, foster talent, and train workforces to develop, deploy, and maintain AI systems. Guterres described the creation of a global AI capacity-building network as both an economic necessity and a moral imperative.
Guterres also acknowledged AI’s role in climate action but warned of its environmental impact, particularly the strain on energy resources due to power-intensive systems. He called for the development of energy-efficient AI infrastructure to mitigate these effects.
Concluding his speech, Guterres posed critical ethical questions regarding AI: “Who decides what problems AI should or should not resolve? Who benefits most from its deployment? Who bears the cost of its mistakes?” He urged immediate collective action, stating, “AI is not standing still – neither can we. Let us move for an AI that is shaped by all of humanity, for all of humanity.”
The Secretary-General’s remarks underscore the pressing need for a unified global approach to AI governance, emphasizing inclusivity, ethical considerations, and sustainable development to ensure that AI technologies benefit all of humanity.