AI: Türk urges action before it becomes an ‘existential risk to humanity’

This article is published in association with United Nations.

UN human rights chief Volker Türk added his voice on Monday to growing calls for greater AI controls, warning that the revolutionary technology could become an “existential risk to humanity” if left unchecked.

Without binding rules, independent oversight and clear limits, the technology could become impossible to control, the High Commissioner told the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Mr. Türk raised the prospect of AI systems becoming so powerful that their developers could no longer control them.

“AI that escapes its testing environment, or blackmails developers to prevent itself from being turned off, is AI that is too powerful,” he said. “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.”   

‘A handful of men’ in control

Mr. Türk called on countries hosting AI technologies and those involved in their supply chains to work together to establish clear boundaries.

“We need independent verification and much closer cooperation on safety within the sector,” he said.

But he stressed that the challenge goes beyond technical safety.

“A handful of men has almost unlimited power over AI,” he said, pointing to the growing concentration of technological power and the vast amounts of data being collected and processed.

But he also highlighted the need for technology “that serves humanity rather than the other way round”, with regard to jobs, democracy and the environment, insisting that human rights must remain the guiding principle.

 ‘Horrified’ by autonomous weapons

The High Commissioner also raised concerns about AI being used in warfare, particularly the development of weapons capable of making lethal decisions without human intervention.

Mr. Türk said he was “horrified” by reports of fully autonomous drones allegedly deployed by Russia that killed three Ukrainians last month. Ukraine has also reportedly tested such weapons.

“I join calls for the urgent prohibition of weapons that can take lives without human involvement,” he told Council members.

He also warned that the war in Ukraine, now in its fifth year, continues to cause mounting civilian casualties and damage to critical energy infrastructure, with deaths and injuries also reported in Russia.

More than 60 wars

The High Commissioner broadened his warning to the wider global security landscape, expressing deep concern at the proliferation of armed conflicts and the erosion of international law.

More than 60 conflicts involving at least one country are now happening worldwide, a level not seen since the end of the Second World War.

Mr. Türk also expressed alarm at the renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran and their wider geopolitical and economic repercussions.

Civilian casualties continue to be reported, he noted, including at a wedding in Iran’s Hormozgan province. 

Gaza and occupied West Bank

Turning to the Middle East, Mr. Türk condemned continuing Israeli strikes in Gaza and restrictions on humanitarian aid, as well as plans for the forced displacement of Palestinians and dehumanizing rhetoric by some senior Israeli officials.

He also condemned executions and torture reportedly carried out by armed groups affiliated with Hamas.

In the occupied West Bank, Mr. Türk called for action against annexation, settlement expansion by Israel and arms transfers that could facilitate violations of international law.

“The international community must redouble efforts towards lasting peace, in which Palestine and Israel live side by side with equal dignity and rights…. Words of condemnation ring hollow in the face of deliberate violations and suffering,” Mr. Türk said.