22 heads of state and government are calling for stricter AI controls

In light of recent security incidents, 22 heads of state and government have spoken out in favor of stricter control of artificial intelligence. In a joint statement, the group led by the initiators Finland and Norway called for binding security rules for developers and the establishment of a global control authority.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, were also among the signatories of the document, which was presented on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. In addition to European countries, Australia, Canada, Kenya, Singapore and South Africa have joined. The USA and China, which are currently considered leaders in the AI ​​industry, are not yet included.

Warning against rapid development

Recently, there have been several reports of security-related incidents in connection with the development of the technology. The initiators also referred to this in their statement. It was recently observed how high-performance systems bypassed built-in protection measures, exploited security gaps and gained unauthorized access to real computer networks, it said.

Most recently, even leading AI companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic warned that current developments were moving too quickly and advocated slowing down the pace.

In a three-point paper, the undersigned heads of state and government are calling on manufacturers to take comprehensible security precautions and for new programs to be examined by independent experts. To this end, governments should create uniform guidelines and report serious incidents. The United Nations countries should also consider setting up an international body that sets and monitors binding standards for AI, it said.