UN rights chief warns AI could pose ‘existential’ risk to humanity’

UN rights chief Volker Turk warned on Monday that artificial intelligence could pose a threat to humanity, and pledged to press AI firms to reduce risks that his office said included disruptions to services, communications and democratic systems.

He called for “cast-iron guarantees” to secure AI in a speech ahead of the start of his unprecedented second term, in which he also demanded accountability over ‌deaths in US immigration custody and condemned Russia’s reported use of autonomous drones.

The wide-ranging address was his first to the 47-member council since he won the four-year term in July in the face of opposition from Moscow and Washington.

“I share the concerns of industry insiders that advanced AI could pose an existential risk to humanity,” Turk told the body in Geneva.

“I am calling here, today, for an all-out effort to put cast-iron guarantees in place around the safety and security of AI, before it is too late.”

Turk did not elaborate on the nature of ⁠the risks but a spokesperson for his office said failures involving powerful AI systems could disrupt critical infrastructure and democratic institutions.