UN official calls for unified AI regulation amid widening inequality
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND — The top tech official of the United Nations has raised concerns about fragmented AI regulations, cautioning that uncoordinated approaches could exacerbate global inequalities.
According to a report from Agence France-Presse, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Head, Doreen Bogdan-Martin, stressed the urgent need for a unified framework as the United States, the European Union, and China pursue competing strategies for governing artificial intelligence.
Divergent AI policies risk widening inequality
According to the ITU Chief, unless there is some sort of coordination, such divergence of paths risks enabling damaging vectors, such as the widespread use of deepfakes and the displacement of jobs, the latter of which leaves developing countries behind.
“We have the EU approach. We have the Chinese approach. Now we’re seeing the US approach. I think what’s needed is for those approaches to dialogue,” Bogtan-Martin said.
The Geneva-based agency, which sets the world standards in tech, is believed to offset such divisions by promoting multilateral dialogues.
Bogdan-Martin also warned that national policies often operate in isolation, which could make AI a growth enhancer of inequalities rather than a path towards common prosperity, considering that 2.6 billion people are still offline and not exposed to AI at all.
Digital divides threaten AI’s promise
While praising AI’s “mind-blowing” potential in healthcare and education, Bogdan-Martin highlighted stark disparities: women hold fewer than 22% of AI jobs globally, and offline populations face total exclusion from the technology’s benefits.
“We have to tackle those divides if we’re actually going to have something that is beneficial to all of humanity,” she said.
The ITU will focus on infrastructure investment and capacity building in developing countries to ensure that AI does not exacerbate the existing disparities.
The Trump administration is funding Bogdan-Martin’s re-election campaign, and it is crucial to prioritize these equity objectives. Many continue to question how to reach a consensus on the U.S.-China tech rivalry and Europe‘s precautionary approach.
