On 9 January 2025, DiploFoundation, in collaboration with the Permanent Missions of China, France, Kenya, Mexico, Pakistan, Switzerland, and the United States to the United Nations in Geneva – as co-sponsors – hosted an informal dialogue to explore how the international community can support inclusive and enabling artificial intelligence (AI) in 2025. The event brought together some 50 participants from missions of UN member states and international organisations.
The dialogue was structured around the following main themes:
- AI under the bonnet
- Mapping of AI governance frameworks and initiatives at regional and international levels
- International frameworks for governing AI: 2024 highlights and 2025 outlook
- AI divides and capacity building: What next?
During the debates, the following points were highlighted a few areas for advancing AI and digitalisation in 2025:
- Practical applications of AI: Policy work should reflect the mainstreaming of AI in health, development, the economy, education, and other segments of modern society. In this context, Geneva-based specialised agencies could play a critical role in ensuring responsible and effective use of AI by societies worldwide.
- AI and data governance: With data being the foundation of AI, discussions on AI must be closely linked to new dynamism in data governance. AI and data should be addressed in two separate policy silos.
- Access to capacity-building opportunities: While offers of capacity development funds and opportunities in AI are growing, innovative solutions are needed to ensure they reach communities, companies, and citizens in the Global South. There is a need for an easy-to-access and agile help desk for AI capacity building.
- Broader representation in AI scientific discussion: The growing impact of AI on education, the economy, and society calls for AI scientific discussions to include diverse perspectives beyond core AI scientific and technological expertise. AI scientific bodies should include anthropologists, sociologists, lawyers, and philosophers, among others.
- Empowering diplomats for the AI era: Capacity building must also equip diplomats and international officials with the necessary understanding of AI to effectively engage in policy work, negotiations, and implementation programmes.
Event gallery
