UN chief calls for stronger global AI rules

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday urged governments worldwide to strengthen artificial intelligence (AI) governance, warning that without shared rules, governments and people will have less say in the outcome.

Speaking at a press conference at UN headquarters in New York, Guterres welcomed the release of the first assessment report from the UN Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence.The 40-member group of experts from around the world was established months ago as the first global, fully independent scientific body dedicated to bridging AI knowledge gaps and assessing its real-world impact on economies and societies.

The preliminary report, released earlier on Wednesday and made available to governments and the public, outlines both the promise and perils of the technology. At the same time, the panel remained clear-eyed about the harms AI could cause, said the UN head.

If properly harnessed, Guterres said, AI can become the most powerful engine for development, accelerating global progress in health, hunger eradication, education and climate action.

The UN chief called on governments to act promptly to step up AI rules.

"The more AI advances without shared rules, the less say governments and people will have in the outcome. So my message to governments is simple: Do not wait," he said.

Guterres said the report is the first in an ongoing effort, as the scientific panel will continue its work as AI evolves.

The inaugural Global Dialogue on AI Governance is set to take place next week in Geneva, where the international community will begin translating scientific evidence into collective action and bring every nation to the same table, he said.

Guterres said he would soon put forward proposals to help countries build capacity to fully address AI developments and share in the benefits.

As for whether international cooperation can keep pace with the speed of technological changes, Guterres said the answer has been given in the newly released report.

"The science is here. We can no longer say we did not know. What we do with it is now up to all of us," he said.

UN chief calls for stronger global AI rules

Chinese mainland on Thursday slammed Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities for turning a blind eye to illegal acts of infringement by Japan and the Philippines, calling them accomplices of external forces in undermining the overall interests of the Chinese nation.

"Japan and the Philippines bypassed China and launched so-called maritime delimitation negotiations in the relevant waters. This constitutes a serious violation of international law and the basic norms governing international relations, gravely infringes upon China's maritime rights and interests, and is utterly illegal and null and void. The law enforcement patrols conducted by the China Coast Guard in the relevant waters are an exercise of jurisdiction in accordance with the law and a necessary response to Japan and the Philippines," said Zhu Fenglian, spokeswoman of State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, at a press briefing in Beijing.

"The DPP authorities, however, have turned a deaf ear and a blind eye to the infringements by Japan and the Philippines and to their damage done to the interests of the people in Taiwan. They are seizing the opportunity to spread the separatist fallacies of 'Taiwan secession' and incite 'anti-China' sentiments. They have thus degenerated into accomplices of external forces in undermining the overall interests of the Chinese nation. Such despicable and shameless conduct will surely be spurned by compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait," Zhu said.

Chinese spokeswoman slams Taiwan's DPP for turning blind eye to Japan, Philippines' illegal infringement