As world leaders gather in New York for the high-level week of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for stronger international cooperation and global guardrails for artificial intelligence, warning that the rapid development of the technology is advancing faster than humanity’s understanding of its risks.
Meanwhile, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is also heading to New York to brief UN Security Council amid calls for a coordinate slowdown of AI research and development by top US based AI companies. Artificial Intelligence will be a hotly debated topic at the ongoing UN General Assembly session as countries try to find a middle path to lessen AI based risks.
“It is the first responsibility of any government to protect it citizens – including from the threats of artificial intelligence.”
— @antonioguterres pic.twitter.com/xxxKImZYZj
— United Nations Geneva (@UNGeneva) September 20, 2026
Speaking to reporters at the UN headquarters in New York ahead of the UN general assembly’s high level week, Guterres identified runaway AI, climate crisis and deepening inequalities as three existential threats.
As I prepare for my last #UNGA as @UN Secretary-General, I’ve been reflecting on the global challenges people face.
In these difficult times, we have to choose to be hopeful, not hopeless.
We cannot give up fighting for a better world for all – now more than ever. pic.twitter.com/FngFtJMUJp
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) September 21, 2026
Guterres’ comments come ahead of the highly crucial week where leading countries’ representatives are headed to New York to discuss the ongoing crisis in middle-east, Russia and Ukraine as well as the threats posed by frontier AI systems.
He acknowledged AI’s potential to support progress in areas including health, education and climate action, but said governments cannot afford to ignore concerns over the pace of AI development and its potential risks.
Guterres stressed “global cooperation is indispensable” to address those risks and urged governments to ensure that AI development remains safe and accountable.
AI has enormous potential, but a growing number of those building it are warning that development is racing ahead of our understanding of the risks.
We can’t afford to ignore their concerns.
We need genuine international cooperation & a coordinated global effort to make AI…
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) September 17, 2026
Amid concerns about a potential AI arms race between the US and China, the secretary-general said “geopolitical divides” could make it difficult for countries to adopt voluntary pauses on AI development. Such pauses, he said, would not work if they were limited to only a few countries.
“The world cannot afford a race to the bottom on AI safety,” Guterres said.
He further pointed to the UN-founded independent international scientific panel on AI, which he said will inform global discussions by providing the best available evidence on AI’s opportunities and risks.
Guterres has called for guardrails that build trust and “make AI safe, transparent and accountable, with human dignity at the centre.”
Meanwhile OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will brief the United Nations security council next week during the annual gathering of world leaders in New York for the UN general assembly, according to Reuters.
Altman’s remarks will focus on the need for international cooperation and shared safety standards, as well as steps OpenAI is taking to ensure people globally benefit.
The 15-member security council is expected to meet on Wednesday (September 23) on artificial intelligence and international security.
The security council meeting has been convened by France, which is the president of the body for September, and will be chaired by French Minister for Europe and foreign affairs Jean-Noël Barrot.
Also Read: First UN AI Report Warns Global South Shut Out of AI Governance
