AI Could Fuel Global Inequality Without Joint Rules, UN Warns

The United Nations has issued a stark warning: artificial intelligence could significantly deepen global inequality unless countries collaborate to establish international rules ensuring the technology benefits all of humanity. This urgent call comes as governments, tech companies, and experts convene in Geneva for the inaugural UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance.

The two-day meeting, which commenced on Monday, is taking place amidst escalating concerns that the swift progress of AI is outpacing the regulatory capacity of governments worldwide. This disparity fuels fears that developing nations could be marginalized, while a select few countries dominate the AI landscape.

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The AI divide is real.

Ambassador Egriselda López of El Salvador, co-chair of the Global Dialogue, stated, "The AI divide is real." She pointed out that while some nations possess advanced infrastructure, research capabilities, and technical expertise, many others still struggle with basic connectivity and public services, severely limiting their ability to leverage AI's potential.

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The frontier developers are basically concentrated in two countries. This leaves other countries with a lot of questions.

Ambassador Rein Tammsaar of Estonia, the Dialogue's other co-chair, acknowledged AI's potential as a "great equalizer" capable of boosting productivity, economic development, healthcare, and scientific innovation. However, he cautioned that without inclusive governance, countries with limited AI access risk falling further behind. "The frontier developers are basically concentrated in two countries," Tammsaar noted, referring to the United States and China, leaving "other countries with a lot of questions."

Many developing nations share the fear that the pace of AI development is so rapid they may never catch up if the technology remains concentrated in a few economies. The discussions in Geneva are being informed by the first report from the UN's Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence. This 40-member expert body warns that despite AI's immense potential to improve lives, governments currently lack the necessary national and international governance tools to manage its inherent risks.

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We don’t have the right national or even international governance tools, and we don’t have good ways to steer the benefits so that they are shared by everyone.

Yoshua Bengio, co-chair of the scientific panel, emphasized that AI is approaching or surpassing human capabilities in numerous fields, evolving faster than scientific understanding and regulatory frameworks. "We don’t have the right national or even international governance tools, and we don’t have good ways to steer the benefits so that they are shared by everyone," Bengio stated. The panel also cautioned that growing evidence of deceptive AI behavior suggests science cannot yet guarantee that increasingly capable AI systems will not cause "catastrophic harm," whether through misuse or malicious actors.

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growing evidence of deceptive AI behaviour means science cannot yet guarantee that increasingly capable AI systems will not cause catastrophic harm