ONE United Nations A report released today proposes an international agency to oversee the first truly global effort to track and manage artificial intelligence.
Report by the Secretary-General of the United Nations High-Level Advisory Body on AIrecommends the establishment of a body similar to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to collect the latest information on AI and its risks.
The report calls for a new policy dialogue on AI so that the 193 members of the United Nations can discuss risks and agree on action. The report also recommends that the UN take steps to empower poorer countries, especially those in the Global South, to benefit from AI and contribute to its governance. These should include creating an AI fund to support projects in these countries, establishing AI standards and data-sharing systems, and creating resources such as training to help countries govern AI, the report said. Some of the report’s recommendations could be facilitated by Global Digital Pactan existing plan to address the data and digital divide between countries. Finally, the plan proposes the establishment of an AI office within the United Nations that would coordinate existing efforts within the United Nations to achieve the report’s goals.
“You have an international community that agrees that AI has both harms and risks and opportunities,” he said. Alondra Nelsona professor at Institute for Advanced Study who served on a United Nations advisory body at the request of the White House and the State Department.
Remarkable abilities demonstrated by large language models and chatbots in recent years has raised hopes of a revolution in economic productivity but has also prompted some experts to warn that AI may be developing too quickly and could soon become uncontrollable. Not long after ChatGPT emerged, many scientists and entrepreneurs signed a letter calling for a six-month moratorium on the development of technology to be able to assess risk.
More pressing concerns include the potential for AI automate misinformationgenerate deepfake video and audio, replace workers series, and exacerbating social algorithm bias on an industrial scale. “There is a sense of urgency and people feel we need to work together,” Nelson said.
The UN proposals reflect a growing interest among policymakers around the world in regulating AI to mitigate these risks. But they also come as major powers — particularly the United States and China — jostle to take the lead in a technology that promises to bring enormous economic, scientific and military benefits, and as those nations lay out their own visions for how it will be used and controlled.
In March, the United States passed a resolution to the United Nations calling on member states to adopt the development of “safe, secure and trustworthy AI.” In July, China introduced a solution of its own emphasizes cooperation in developing AI and widely disseminating this technology. All UN member states have signed both agreements.
“AI is part of the competition between the US and China, so there are only a few things they will agree on,” he said. Joshua MeltzerKey differences include what norms and values should be embodied by AI and what protections around privacy and personal data, he said.
