UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres compared the risks posed by artificial intelligence (AI) to the dangers of nuclear weapons during the Cold War on September 22 (local time), urging leading AI nations to establish safety guardrails.

Delivering his opening address at the general debate of the UN General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, Guterres named technology—particularly AI—as one of the "four tests of power" currently facing the international community.

"For centuries, power was found in territory; then in industry; then in finance," he said. "Today, power increasingly flows from data, computing power, and algorithms."

He warned, "This new power is highly concentrated, developing at a breakneck pace, and racing far ahead of our capacity to understand all of its consequences."

"The danger is not the technology itself," he emphasized. "The danger is technology without responsibility, capabilities without oversight, and decision-making without transparency."

Guterres likened the inter-state competition surrounding AI to nuclear weapons.

"During the Cold War, strategic competitors recognized the need to manage shared existential risks," he said. "They built mechanisms to reduce misunderstandings, manage escalation, and prevent catastrophe—back then, that meant nuclear weapons."

"Today, artificial intelligence demands that same clarity of purpose and sense of urgency," he urged. "The nations leading this technological revolution must share information on emerging safety risks, cooperate on testing and evaluation, and work to establish shared safety guardrails that protect us all."

He particularly emphasized the responsibilities of major powers leading the AI sector, such as the United States and China.

"Governments with the most powerful AI capabilities bear the greatest responsibility to humanity," the UN chief said, calling for the establishment of channels for dialogue, transparency, trust, and cooperation.

"We must do so not despite geopolitical competition, but because of it," he added.

Stressing that global cooperation is essential as AI impacts the entire world, Guterres underscored that the UN—where all nations can have a voice in shaping a shared future—must play a central role in AI governance.

Guterres presented this argument for AI cooperation within the broader framework of a multipolar world order.

Stating that the world is "moving irreversibly toward a multipolar system," he emphasized that instead of drifting toward division, transactionalism, and zero-sum competition, the world must build a "networked multipolar system based on interdependence."

"While competition will remain a permanent feature of international relations, competition does not have to mean confrontation," he said.

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