The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the United Nations (UN) recently announced a new partnership focused on global artificial intelligence (AI) governance. The collaboration, revealed during the “Summit of the Future” at the UN headquarters in New York, aims to strengthen the global framework for managing both the opportunities and risks posed by rapidly evolving AI technologies.

The announcement was made by Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen, Deputy Secretary-General of the OECD, and Amandeep Singh Gill, the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology. Both leaders emphasized the importance of cohesive global efforts to ensure that AI is developed and deployed in a responsible, inclusive, and human-centered way.

The joint initiative reflects the urgency of establishing effective governance for AI, as the technology continues to develop at an unprecedented pace. According to UN Under-Secretary-General Gill, the collaboration between the UN and OECD will help governments and policymakers around the world respond more effectively to the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

“The speed of AI technology development and the breadth of its impact require diverse policy ecosystems to work more cohesively and in real time,” said Gill. “I am delighted that the OECD and the UN will link their efforts to help governments improve the quality and timeliness of their policy response to AI’s opportunities and its risks.”

The collaboration will focus on regular science-based assessments of AI’s risks and opportunities. These assessments will be supported by the technical expertise and analytical capabilities of the OECD, paired with the UN’s extensive global reach.

The foundation of this partnership is rooted in a shared commitment to evidence-based policy. Deputy Secretary-General Knudsen emphasized the need for rigorous scientific analysis as a cornerstone of effective AI governance. 

“Rigorous scientific and evidence-based assessment must be at the heart of global AI governance,” Knudsen stated. “This announcement marks a significant step in that direction by bringing the technical and analytical capabilities of the OECD together with the UN’s global reach.”

The OECD has already laid considerable groundwork in the area of AI policy through its “AI Policy Observatory,” which provides data and analysis on AI trends, and its work advancing the implementation of the “OECD AI Principles,” which promote trustworthy AI. The “Global Partnership on AI (GPAI)”—an initiative hosted at the OECD—also plays a critical role in fostering collaboration on AI research and policy among countries.

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