The UN chief AI governance message took centre stage on Monday as United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged the international community to establish a global framework for artificial intelligence. Speaking at the first Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva, Guterres warned that AI is advancing at an unprecedented pace and must be guided by human oversight, transparency and shared international rules.
Addressing representatives from governments, technology companies, academia and civil society, Guterres said AI is rapidly transforming societies around the world. He cautioned that artificial intelligence is increasingly capable of writing code, acting independently online and making decisions with limited human supervision, raising concerns about accountability and public trust.
The UN chief also warned against relying too heavily on AI-generated content and decision-making. Referring to the growing trend of “vibe-coding,” where users instruct AI systems instead of writing code themselves, he acknowledged its benefits but stressed that humanity cannot allow technology to determine truth or shape the future without responsible governance.
Guterres highlighted another major concern: the concentration of AI development in a small number of companies and countries. He said many developing nations have little influence over decisions that could significantly affect their future, calling for more inclusive international cooperation to ensure equal access to AI technologies and opportunities.
The secretary-general emphasized that AI should be developed with strong safeguards, including respect for human rights, public safety and child protection. He proposed an AI Child Safety Pledge that would require companies to prove that AI systems accessible to children are safe and include measures to prevent abuse while connecting vulnerable children with real human support.
He also called for the creation of a Global Fund for AI to help developing countries strengthen digital infrastructure, technical expertise and computing resources. In addition, Guterres urged technology companies to reduce AI’s environmental impact by increasing transparency and powering data centres with renewable energy by 2030.
The UN chief AI governance appeal also focused on the military use of artificial intelligence. Guterres described fully autonomous lethal weapons as “killer robots” and called for an international legal ban on systems capable of selecting and attacking targets without meaningful human control, stressing that the world has only a limited window to establish effective safeguards.
