The heads of OpenAI and Anthropic urged the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday to establish international safeguards for artificial intelligence, warning of potential catastrophic risks if the technology is left unchecked. Their call for coordinated global action came just one day after U.S. President Donald Trump rejected any framework that would slow AI development, framing such efforts as a “globalist scheme” to control the technology.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei testified before the 15-member council, emphasizing the need for shared governance to address AI’s growing potential to cause harm. Altman stated, “In our history, there have been times where countries who compete and don't always like each other very much still come together for shared interests and the collective good in the face of a powerful new technology. We believe this must be one of those times.” Amodei added, “If managed poorly, I even believe AI could be a risk to humanity as a whole.”
Trump’s UN Speech Rejects AI Regulation
On Tuesday, Trump told the United Nations General Assembly that the U.S. would not stifle AI progress, declaring, “I'm not going to stifle growth of something that will be bigger than the industrial revolution.” He criticized proposed global controls as an attempt to curb U.S. technological leadership, asserting that the country would remain ahead of China in AI development. Trump’s stance contrasts sharply with the warnings from AI executives, who called for benchmarks to measure capabilities and assess safeguards.
UN Security Council Weighs AI as a Security Threat
The briefing by Altman, Amodei, and Hugging Face co-founder Clément Delangue marked a shift in how governments view AI—as a potential threat to international peace and security. A European diplomat told reporters that the council’s focus was on “whether we could one day face a situation where algorithms interacting with each other trigger a war.” The discussion follows growing concerns from researchers and policymakers that AI systems could become increasingly autonomous, outpacing human oversight.
Key Concerns and Proposals
Altman proposed that world leaders adopt standardized benchmarks to evaluate AI capabilities and the safeguards implemented by companies. He also emphasized the need to prevent AI power from concentrating in a single country or corporation. Yoshua Bengio, a Canadian AI pioneer and co-chair of a UN-backed scientific panel, warned council members that the dangers posed by advanced AI are “real and imminent.”
The UN’s involvement reflects broader anxieties about AI’s role in geopolitical instability. Unlike traditional weapons or cyber tools, advanced AI models could interact unpredictably, raising questions about accountability and control. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot chaired the meeting, with representatives from the U.S. and China also expected to weigh in.
U.S.-China AI Dialogue Ahead
Ahead of a planned meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Washington on Thursday, both nations have discussed establishing a notification system for AI-related incidents that pose national security risks. While the U.S. and China have historically clashed over technology governance, the potential for AI-driven conflicts has prompted tentative cooperation on risk mitigation.
The Security Council’s deliberations underscore the urgency of addressing AI governance before capabilities advance beyond human control. As Altman noted, “We could lose control of the future to AI.” The question now is whether global leaders can agree on a framework before the technology’s risks outweigh its benefits.