{"slug": "20-nations-call-for-new-global-body-to-oversee-ai", "title": "20 nations call for new global body to oversee AI", "summary": "Leaders and representatives from 20 countries released a statement Monday calling for a new international institution to oversee advanced AI, hosted by the President of Finland ahead of the United Nations General Assembly's high-level General Debate. The statement asks companies to test systems for safety before public deployment and allow independent evaluators, urges governments and regional groups to develop common safety standards, and says UN members should \"explore creating an international institution, able to set standards, enable verification, and convene states when capability thresholds are crossed.\" Signatories include Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Kenyan President William Ruto, Netherlands Prime Minister Rob Jetten, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, while representatives from the U.S., U.K. and China have not signed the document.", "body_md": "Leaders and representatives from 20 countries released a statement Monday afternoon calling for increased oversight of advanced AI systems.\n\nThe statement, [hosted by the President of Finland](https://www.presidentti.fi/en/a-call-for-control-of-frontier-ai-models/), declares that the rapid pace of AI development and recent episodes of AI systems’ sidestepping safety protocols demand concerted international coordination.\n\n“AI must remain under human direction, oversight and control,” the statement says. “It must be developed and used in line with international law.”\n\nRepresentatives from major powers including the U.S., U.K. and China have not signed the document.\n\nThe statement comes a day before the United Nations General Assembly’s high-level General Debate kicks off, when political and business leaders from around the world descend on New York City for the week to hash out agreements and chart out priorities for the year ahead.\n\nHeads of state or government that signed the statement include Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Kenyan President William Ruto, Netherlands Prime Minister Rob Jetten, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.\n\nSeveral ministers and other government figures had also signed the document, including Türkiye’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hakan Fidan, and the United Arab Emirates’ Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.\n\nThe statement features three main calls to action. First, it asks companies to test their systems for safety issues before they are publicly deployed and to allow independent evaluators to assess the risks from companies’ practices.\n\nSecond, the statement requests governments and regional groups develop common safety standards to ensure that countries around the globe can evaluate their models with required scientific expertise.\n\nThird, the statement says UN members should leverage existing international efforts and “explore creating an international institution, able to set standards, enable verification, and convene states when capability thresholds are crossed.”\n\nNick Moes, Executive Director of AI governance nonprofit The Future Society, commended the statement and said it was a sign of clear appetite for meaningful AI coordination. “It is great news that this broad range of governments come together to call for an international institution because no government can achieve this alone,” he told NBC News.\n\n“But beyond statements, mobilizing diplomatic, political and financial capital will be needed to bring about the change that they agreed is necessary to keep control over frontier AI models,” he added.\n\nAt the UN General Assembly, AI will take center stage during official discussions and dozens of side events, with leaders aiming to set the AI agenda, secure investment and ensure their countries are relevant in AI debates. The U.N. Security Council and U.S. representatives will hold separate sessions dedicated to AI on Wednesday.\n\nSeveral international efforts dedicated to AI and AI oversight already exist, but they vary in their remit and technological depth. The U.N. hosts the [Independent International Scientific Panel on AI](https://www.un.org/independent-international-scientific-panel-ai/en), a group of dozens of scientific experts from around the world, in addition to the [Global Dialogue on AI Governance](https://www.un.org/global-dialogue-ai-governance/en), a platform for countries to debate AI regulation and coordination.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/20-nations-call-for-new-global-body-to-oversee-ai", "canonical_source": "https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/20-countries-call-global-ai-oversight-rcna599062", "published_at": "2026-09-21 19:33:55+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-21 19:54:36.337654+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-policy", "ai-safety", "artificial-intelligence"], "entities": ["Finland", "United Nations General Assembly", "Mark Carney", "William Ruto", "Rob Jetten", "Anthony Albanese", "Cyril Ramaphosa", "The Future Society"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/20-nations-call-for-new-global-body-to-oversee-ai", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/20-nations-call-for-new-global-body-to-oversee-ai.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/20-nations-call-for-new-global-body-to-oversee-ai.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/20-nations-call-for-new-global-body-to-oversee-ai.jsonld"}}