Artificial intelligence is racing ahead at a pace “faster than anyone can keep up,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned in Geneva, pressing governments to put globally “harmonised rules” in place to curb risks and insisting that “no child should be a guinea pig for unregulated AI.”
Speaking at the first Global Dialogue on AI Governance, Mr Guterres called for a global governance system that can steer AI toward the benefit of humanity, cautioning against allowing the technology to “vibe-code” people’s future.
“AI is already transforming our world; the question is whether we will shape this transformation together, or let it shape us,” Mr Guterres told the first Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva.
‘Vibe-coding’
He said so-called “vibe-coding” — where AI is allowed to write code and directly control machines — can “do wonders,” but warned that humanity cannot allow its future to be “vibe-coded.”
“A technology that can reshape economies, transform the world of work, sway elections and tilt the balance of security is being deployed faster than anyone, including the people building it, can keep up,” he added.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned against letting AI shape the future unchecked
Mr Guterres also cautioned that this could be the final generation with the ability to set the terms for how people and machines live alongside one another.
Delegates at the gathering are set to consider a report produced by a UN-backed independent scientific panel of 40 experts, presenting findings from the first global, independent scientific assessment of AI.
A broader report is due next year, alongside a second global meeting scheduled to take place in New York.
Concentration of power
Among the dangers Mr Guterres highlighted was the concentration of power in just a handful of AI companies and a small number of countries.
Most countries “have had no say in decisions that will shape their futures”, he warned.
Given the stakes, he said, governments face a stark choice: “between governing by design and drifting by default”.
At the same time, the UN chief pointed to AI’s potential to accelerate development, improve healthcare and widen access to education.
But he argued that progress must be anchored in clear priorities — including safety and respect for human rights — so that the gains are shared widely.
Mr Guterres urged countries to agree on “common methods to evaluate and verify risks” as well as shared standards, with particular emphasis on protecting children who use AI systems.
“We do not let medicine reach a child until it is proven safe; we test every toy,” he said.
“Yet AI has reached our children – their learning, their friendships, their most private questions – before anyone asked what it would do to them,” he added.
He called for an AI Child Safety Pledge that would require companies to demonstrate that any system accessible to children is safe and that there is zero tolerance for sexual abuse.
He added that such systems must also link any child showing signs of distress to real human support.
“No child should be a guinea pig for unregulated AI,” he insisted.
Delegates at the conference heard a call for an AI Child Safety Pledge
‘Killer robots’
Mr Guterres also stressed the need to boost AI capacity and access across developing countries so the deep digital divide does not “harden into an AI divide.”
He said he would urge the UN General Assembly to establish a Global Fund for AI, “to build skills, data and affordable computing power everywhere”.
Reducing AI’s climate impact was another priority, he said, repeating his call for companies to disclose their expanding environmental footprint and to commit to powering every data centre with renewable energy by 2030.
The UN chief said his biggest concern, however, lies with AI used in military contexts — especially so-called lethal autonomous weapon systems.
“Let us call them what they are: Killer robots,” he said.
“Machines selecting and engaging their target and taking a life, without human control and judgement”.
“That is morally repugnant… And it must be banned by international law.”
Mr Guterres underlined the urgency of building strong guardrails to guide AI in a constructive direction.
“We may be the last generation able to set the terms on which humanity and machines coexist,” he said.
“The door is still open. It will not stay open long.”
