New York City, 19 September 2024
The imperative for global regulation of the booming artificial intelligence field, or AI, is “irrefutable”, a new report from a UN expert group said on Thursday, adding that development and use of such a technology “cannot be left to the whims of markets alone”.
“The very nature of the technology itself – transboundary in structure and application – necessitates a global approach,”the final report from the UN Secretary-General appointed panel concludes.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming our world, from opening new areas of scientific inquiry and optimizing energy grids, to improving public health and agriculture and promoting progress on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
In an effort to mitigate these risks, the report proposes several recommendations to establish a framework for AI global governance.
Growing human rights concerns
There is also utmost concern expressed in the report about the ways in which AI may be used to infringe on human rights.
The very raw materials needed for AI technologies – including critical minerals – are globally sourced, leading to a battle for power and wealth over these rare commodities on a global scale.
Further, autonomous weapons systems could make decisions without human intervention, raising ethical and legal questions about accountability and the protection of civilians during conflicts. Increasing potential for an arms race driven by advancements in AI technology could also endanger human security.
AI bias and surveillance is yet another area of concern, with the creation and dissemination of disinformation potentially harming civilians.
Gaps already appearing
Disparities are already begininning to appear. In terms of representation, whole parts of the world have been left out of international AI governance conversations.
For instance, just seven countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK and US) are parties to seven prominent non-UN AI initiatives, whereas 118 countries, primarily in the Global South, are parties to none.
“Equity demands that more voices play meaningful roles in decisions about how to govern technology that affects us,” the report states.
“The concentration of decision-making in the AI technology sector cannot be justified; we must also recognize that historically many communities have been entirely excluded from AI governance conversations that impact them,” it added.
Globally inclusive architecture
To address these concerns, the UN expert group is proposing several recommendations for regulating the use of AI.
The recommendations of the report include anindependent international scientific panelon AI, a twice-yearly intergovernmental and multi-stakeholderpolicy dialogueon AI governance to share best practices and a global fund for AI to bridge the digital divide.
The group also stressed thatany deployment of AI in military settings must comply with international humanitarian lawand human rights standards and recommended that states establish robust legal frameworks and oversight mechanisms.
Taken together, these recommendations call on UN Member States to lay the foundations for the first globally inclusive architecture for AI governance based on international cooperation and transparency.
Source – United Nations
Artificial Intelligence Advisory Board’s Report ‘a Crucial Milestone in Efforts to Ensure AI Serves all of Humanity’, Says Secretary-General, in Video Message
Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message for the launch of the final report of the High-level Advisory Board on Artificial Intelligence (AI), in New York today:
Dear friends, last year, as generative artificial intelligence exploded in popularity, I launched a High-Level Advisory Body to examine how to share the benefits of this extraordinary technology while addressing its challenges.
It was already clear that AI came with immediate and long-term risks, including to human rights. And there were serious concerns that the power of AI was concentrated in a small group of countries and companies.
This Advisory Body was the first of its kind in the AI space — a geographically diverse, gender-balanced group bringing together experts from Governments, the private sector, civil society and academia.
It was charged with a pressing question: how can AI be governed for humanity — particularly for those who are often under-represented and left out? Working at an impressive pace, the Advisory Body tackled its complex mandate with remarkable effectiveness.
As they share their final report, I commend the breadth of their recommendations, which include creating: An International Scientific Panel on AI — to promote common understanding on AI capabilities, opportunities and risks; a Global Dialogue on AI Governance at the UN — to anchor AI governance in international norms and principles, including human rights; a Global Fund on AI for the SDGs [Sustainable Development Goals] — to bridge the AI divide; an AI Capacity Development Network — to boost AI capacities and expertise, particularly in developing countries; a Standards Exchange — to foster technical compatibility; a Global Data Framework — to enable flourishing local AI ecosystems; and a small AI Office at the United Nations — to assist in all these initiatives.
I fully support these recommendations, which provide a blueprint to build on existing efforts and together, shape an international AI architecture that is inclusive, agile, and effective — for today and the future.
I want to express my deep gratitude to every member of the Advisory Body for their dedication and hard work. I urge all stakeholders to give these recommendations their fullest consideration.
I call on Member States to meet this moment and be bold — starting this week at the Summit of the Future. This report is not the end of our journey, but a crucial milestone in our ongoing efforts to ensure AI serves all of humanity.
Source – United Nations
Summit of the Future Explainer: The push to connect a digitally divided world and counter AI threats
By Conor Lennon, United Nations News
A surge in the development of powerful artificial intelligence (AI) tools is already improving lives but is also bringing fresh urgency to calls for regulation, as more and more governments wake up to the risks. Effective global regulation to ensure that AI is developed safely for the benefit of all is urgently needed.
Earlier this year, an audience in a Geneva conference hall sat captivated by a video screen carrying live pictures of a 25-year-old man in Portugal suffering from ‘locked-in syndrome’, a devastating neurological disorder that causes patients to lose control of their body; some two years after contracting the condition, he was unable to move or speak.
Nevertheless, he was able to communicate with the audience and answer a series of questions, using his mind to connect with a digital, AI-powered tool that translated his thoughts into words, spoken in his voice.
Lives are being saved by AI
The experience was overwhelming for many in the audience, several of whom were in tears. “I had to compose myself,” says Fred Werner, Head of Strategic Engagement at the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the UN agency for digital technology, and one of the organizers of the AI for Good summit. “Yes, there are many discussions around safety, privacy, ethics and sustainability, but I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that lives are being saved by AI.”
Mr. Werner is quick to point out that the positive aspects of AI are not being overlooked by the UN. “We’ve identified over 400 applications of AI across the UN system. It’s being used in areas ranging from natural hazards management to human rights monitoring, a wide selection of sustainable development-related activities”.
Whilst the Geneva demonstration of AI technology serves as a powerful example of the positive effect that artificial intelligence can have on people’s lives, Mr. Werner acknowledges that excitement over the potential benefits of AI is tempered by the risks.
“I think that AI is moving so fast that there is no time to waste. How do we deal with deepfakes, and misinformation? We have to really collaborate on creating international AI standards.”
The Global Digital Compact
This September, at the Summit of the Future, a landmark UN conference, the Organization’s Member countries will adopt a Global Digital Compact, which contains calls for international cooperation to harness the opportunities and mitigate the risks of AI for sustainable development and human rights.
The Compact is intended to inject more trust into the Internet, ensure that people have more options as to how their data is used, and outline accountability for discriminatory and misleading content.
A breakthrough on AI ethics was reached in November 2021, the 193 Member States of the UN science agency, UNESCO, adopted the Recommendation on the Ethics of AI, the first global agreement on human-centric artificial intelligence, a guideline to all governments for creating laws and strategies for AI, aimed at protecting human rights and freedoms.
Two years later, UN Secretary-General António Guterres brought together some of the brightest minds in tech, from both the public and private sectors, to form his Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, whose 38 members concluded, in a report that concluded AI “cries out for governance, not merely to address the challenges and risks, but to ensure we harness its potential in ways that leave no one behind.”
This work has fed into the development of the Global Digital Compact, which comprises a list of commitments and actions. Several relate to the so-called “digital divide”: 2.6 billion people do not have any access to the Internet, cutting them off from the opportunities offered by online tools. The Compact calls for all schools and hospitals to be brought online, building on the UN-backed Giga Initiative, and digital literacy skills training. An International Scientific Panel on AI and an Annual Global Dialogue on AI Governance will be established, and, by 2030, it is hoped that there will be global AI standards that benefit all.
Source – United Nations