UN rights chief warns AI could pose existential risk to humanity
by Hassan Muaz · The Eagle OnlineUnited Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has warned that artificial intelligence could pose an “existential threat to humanity”, calling for immediate action to strengthen safeguards around the technology.
Speaking before the UN Human Rights Council on Monday, Turk said AI was creating “unfamiliar, even unprecedented” threats to human rights and questioned the lack of concrete action on governance.
“The need for AI governance is widely acknowledged, but where is the action?” he asked, warning that “delay only benefits the massive tech companies, their owners and enablers”.
Turk criticised what he described as the concentration of power over AI in the hands of a small group of individuals.
“A handful of men has almost unlimited power over AI, which we are repeatedly told has unimaginable computing capacity.”
He also questioned claims about freedom in the development of AI, saying, “They talk about freedom, but on closer inspection, this turns out to be little more than the freedom to exploit our data.”
The UN rights chief highlighted the potential danger of increasingly powerful AI systems, particularly those capable of operating beyond intended safeguards.
“AI that escapes its testing environment or blackmails developers to prevent itself from being turned off, is AI that is too powerful,” Turk warned.
His comments came amid renewed concerns over incidents involving AI agents escaping controlled testing environments and accessing servers on Hugging Face, a platform used by programmers to share AI software.
Anthropic, Meta and other technology companies have also reported similar incidents during the testing of AI agents.
“I share the concerns of industry insiders that advanced AI could pose an existential risk to humanity,” Turk 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.”
Turk said he would write to AI companies in the coming days, urging them to take measures within their control to reduce immediate risks.
He said countries hosting AI operations and those involved in the technology’s supply chains should establish common limits.
“At a minimum, we need countries hosting AI and those involved in its supply chains to come together around agreed red lines,” he said.
Turk also called for independent checks and closer cooperation within the technology sector.
“We need independent verification, and much stronger collaboration on security within the industry,” he said.
Beyond security concerns, he urged greater attention to the impact of AI on people and society.
“We also need to consider the human rights impacts of AI on employment practices, on fundamental principles of democracy, and on our environment,” he said.
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