UN Forms Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence for Global Governance

• 01 Nov 2023

The United Nations has recently established the High-Level Multistakeholder Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence to address the challenges and opportunities presented by AI.

• This body will bring together experts from various sectors to work on building a global scientific consensus on AI's risks and challenges, harnessing AI for the Sustainable Development Goals, and strengthening international cooperation on AI governance.

Key Points

• Diverse Expertise: The advisory body comprises experts from government, the private sector, the research community, civil society, and academia.
• AI's Transformative Potential: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasized the transformative potential of AI in addressing global challenges.
• AI can enhance various aspects, from predicting and managing crises to delivering public health and education services.
• Developing economies can leapfrog outdated technologies with AI, providing services where they are needed most.
• Global Cooperation: The UN's efforts focus on responsible AI use and broad accessibility, especially in developing countries.
• The concentration of AI expertise in a few entities can deepen global inequalities, and misuse of AI can lead to misinformation, bias, discrimination, surveillance, privacy invasion, fraud, and human rights violations.
• A Call for Multistakeholder Conversation: The newly formed Advisory Body is the starting point for this conversation, aiming to maximize AI's benefits and mitigate risks for all of humanity.
• The body will foster inclusivity and offer preliminary recommendations by the end of 2023, with final recommendations by the summer of 2024.