U.N. AI panel warns of huge benefits and serious risks
A 40-member U.N. panel says AI could bring huge gains, but warns that capabilities are outrunning global rules, oversight and scientific understanding.
The Independent International Scientific Panel on AI issued its first assessment as world leaders prepared for a July 6 to 7 gathering in Geneva that will put AI governance on the diplomatic agenda.
The panel was created by UN General Assembly resolution A/RES/79/325 on Aug. 26, 2025, and its 40 members serve in their personal capacity for three years. The panel was chosen from more than 2,600 candidates, with Yoshua Bengio of Canada and Maria Ressa of the Philippines serving as co-chairs. The group’s mandate is to produce one annual evidence-based, non-prescriptive report, with thematic briefs as needed.
The report warns that AI capabilities are advancing faster than scientific understanding and faster than governments can adapt. The biggest promise of AI sits beside credible dangers, including harms to users’ mental health, destructive uses by bad actors and wider effects on social, economic and environmental systems. Bengio said there was growing evidence of deceptive AI behavior and that science could not guarantee the technology would not cause catastrophic harm “either on its own or due to malicious users” as capabilities rise.
The inaugural Global Dialogue on AI Governance will take place at the Palexpo International Convention Centre in Geneva alongside the International Telecommunication Union AI for Good Global Summit and the World Summit on the Information Society Forum. The dialogue is designed to give all 193 member states a seat at the table, along with the private sector, civil society, academia and the technical community. It is meant to be a discussion forum, not a venue for binding rules or resolutions.
The Global Digital Compact, adopted at the 2024 Summit of the Future, set the basis for the panel and the dialogue, but the institutions now coming together in Geneva are still building the machinery needed to match the pace of AI development. The dialogue drew more than 1,500 written submissions during six months of consultations.
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