UN Security Council Holds Emergency Meeting on AI’s Potential Existential Threat
The first-ever meeting of the United Nations Security Council is scheduled to take place on July 18, with the aim of discussing the potential dangers that artificial intelligence (AI) may pose to global peace and security. The United Kingdom, currently presiding over the council, has organized this meeting. Barbara Woodward, the UK Ambassador, emphasized the significant benefits of AI while also acknowledging the considerable risks associated with its utilization in areas such as autonomous weaponry and nuclear weapon control.
UN Council meeting
The event will feature international AI experts and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who recently expressed concern about the dangers of advanced AI. He compared the alarm surrounding AI to the strongest warning signals heard from its developers, highlighting its potential as an existential threat on a par with nuclear war.
To address these concerns, Guterres revealed his plan to establish an advisory board on artificial intelligence in September, with the goal of developing initiatives that the UN can adopt. He also supported the idea of a new UN agency dedicated to artificial intelligence, modeled after the International Atomic Energy Agency for its data-driven structure and regulatory authority.
Ambassador Woodward emphasized the need for a multilateral approach in managing the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence. He highlighted the potential benefits of artificial intelligence, such as assisting UN development programs, enhancing humanitarian aid operations, supporting peacekeeping operations, and preventing conflicts through data collection and analysis. In addition, AI could help bridge the gap between developing and developed countries.
However, Woodward acknowledged that addressing AI-related risks is critical to global security. European efforts to regulate AI have been at the forefront, and on June 14 EU lawmakers approved the world’s first comprehensive AI rules.
In May, the CEO of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, emphasized the importance of government intervention to reduce the risks posed by increasingly powerful artificial intelligence systems. The idea of creating a US or global agency to license and regulate powerful AI systems has been proposed to ensure compliance with safety standards.
The Security Council meeting, chaired by UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, aims to gather expert views on artificial intelligence – a rapidly evolving technology – and spark discussions among the council’s 15 members about its implications. In addition, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that the country will host a summit on artificial intelligence later this year, providing a platform for a global multilateral debate on this critical topic.
