Global / Policy

Nobel laureate Maria Ressa warns of AI threatening human agency

A UN panel co-chair argues rapid AI deployment risks eroding human autonomy and control over critical decisions.

Maria Ressa, the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has warned that without limits on AI development, humanity risks losing its agency. She co-chairs a UN scientific panel assessing how AI is transforming lives globally.

Published · significance 41 of 100 (low) · 1 source

What happened

Maria Ressa, a Filipino-American journalist who won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize partly for documenting the power of large tech companies, now serves as co-chair of the United Nations' international scientific panel on artificial intelligence. In that role, she is tasked with assessing how AI is transforming lives worldwide and has called for limits on AI to prevent humanity from losing its agency.

Why it matters

Ressa's position at a UN panel gives weight to concerns about AI governance at the international level. Her warning reflects growing anxiety among policy figures and civil society about whether the pace of AI deployment outpaces regulatory frameworks, particularly regarding concentration of power and loss of human autonomy in decision-making.

What changes

The statement highlights the emergence of AI safety and governance as a priority concern within multilateral institutions, signalling that UN bodies are now actively engaged in framing recommendations on AI limits and human agency.

Sources

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