UN adopts first global artificial intelligence resolution

UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday unanimously adopted the first global resolution on artificial intelligence to encourage protecting personal data, monitoring AI for risks, and safeguarding human rights, US officials said.

The nonbinding resolution, proposed by the United States and co-sponsored by China and 121 other nations, took three months to negotiate and also advocates strengthening privacy policies, the officials said, briefing reporters before the resolution’s passage.

“We’re sailing in choppy waters with the fast-changing technology, which means that its more important than ever to steer by the light of our values,” said one of the senior administration officials, describing the resolution as the “first-ever truly global consensus document on AI.”

The resolution is the latest in a series of initiatives - few of which carry teeth - by governments around the world to shape AI’s development, amid fears it could be used to disrupt democratic processes, turbocharge fraud or lead to dramatic job losses, among other harms.