It is not the role of the UN to regulate AI, stressed Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, pointing to an annual global dialogue planned in the international organization on AI with the participation of all countries, governments, the private sector and civil society.
Guterres will soon arrive in New Delhi to attend the India Summit on the Impact of Artificial Intelligence, the first-ever AI summit held in the Global South.
In an exclusive interview with PTI ahead of his summit visit to India, Guterres outlined the international organization’s efforts for global cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI), stressing that it is “perfectly aligned” with the strategy demonstrated by India in its leadership of the AI Summit.
Guterres highlighted three key areas within the UN-initiated Global Digital Compact to contribute to a global artificial intelligence architecture.
The first of these is the creation of a new independent international high-level artificial intelligence scientific panel of 40 experts from around the world.
The UN General Assembly last week appointed 40 members recommended by Guterres to an independent panel.
Head of the Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) at IIT Madras Balaraman Ravindran is among a global group of 40 eminent experts recommended by Guterres to serve on the panel for a period of three years from the date of appointment.
Guterres said that through the panel, “we will have a completely independent and universal … scientific body (that will) be able to tell the world at any moment where we are in relation to AI? What advances have been made? What discoveries have been made? What are the risks of (different) mechanisms or tools and to do it in a completely independent way.”
He described it as a “fantastic source” of information for governments to make the right decisions in policy and action in relation to AI and “for people to know public opinion in general, in democratic countries like India this is very important”.
Guterres also pointed out that the UN is planning an annual global dialogue on artificial intelligence with the participation of all countries, governments, the private sector and civil society.
Stressing that the UN’s role is not to regulate AI, Guterres said the global dialogue will be “a platform where everyone can come and everyone can discuss and where we can learn from each other and eventually come to some possible consensus on the best way to maximize the opportunities of AI and minimize its risks.”
Finally, he expressed hope that his fund proposal would be approved.
“There was an agreement in the General Assembly to support developing countries in building capacity to use AI. So these are three very important contributions from the UN and I believe these contributions are perfectly in line with the strategy that India has shown in leading the way for this summit,” he said.
The UN chief has proposed a voluntary global fund of up to three billion dollars to support countries in building AI capacity.
The Global Digital Compact, adopted at the 2024 Future Summit, set out a shared vision for an open, secure and inclusive digital future.
Among its commitments was the creation of an independent international scientific panel on artificial intelligence to strengthen scientific understanding and ensure international negotiations are based on the best available evidence, the UN said.
Stéphane Dujarric, the secretary-general’s spokesman, told reporters that Guterres was to attend the summit’s opening ceremony, a plenary session with heads of state and government, as well as a session on the role of science in the international governance of artificial intelligence.
The Secretary General will hold bilateral meetings with President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will also meet other world and technology leaders attending the summit as well as members of the International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence.
While in India, Guterres is also scheduled to participate in a roundtable organized by the United Nations to discuss renewable energy and the energy transition.
“As India emerges as a global leader in renewable energy expansion, the discussion will bring together senior figures from industry, finance, politics and civil society to identify concrete steps to further accelerate renewable energy deployment, strengthen grids and storage, and mobilize large-scale investment.
“This engagement is part of the Secretary-General’s ongoing efforts for a faster, fairer and more inclusive global energy transition in line with the Paris Agreement,” Dujarric said.
India’s United Nations said in a statement that more than 30 events organized by the UN system are planned during the five-day summit, which will include sessions on artificial intelligence for resilient agriculture, health systems innovation, ethical governance of artificial intelligence, women’s leadership in technology, digital capacity building in the Global South and responsible business practices.
A statement from the UN in India said the discussion will focus on “how artificial intelligence can accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals while protecting human rights and addressing emerging risks”.
Guterres will be joined at the summit by senior UN officials, including UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk; Under-Secretary-General and UN Secretary-General’s Envoy for Technology Amandeep Singh Gill and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction Kamal Kishore.
Also participating are International Monetary Fund Director General Kristalina Georgieva; Director General of the International Labor Organization Gilbert Houngbo and Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union Doreen Bogdan-Martin.
Published – 18 Feb 2026 11:28 IST