Global Convening Asks What It Means to Be Human in the Age of AI
NEW YORK, 23 September 2026 —The United Nations today concluded its first global AI and Human Development series with a high-level convening at United Nations Headquarters examining how artificial intelligence is reshaping societies, human relationships and humanity’s understanding of itself.
Held during the High-Level Week of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, the open conversation also marked the launch of the AI and Human Development Convenings Report, capturing perspectives, questions and ideas that emerged from the convenings in Cairo, Mexico City, Xi’an and Rome.
Under the leadership of United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed and organized by the United Nations Office for Partnerships, the series brought together policymakers, government officials, technology and international organization leaders, scientists, faith leaders, journalists, artists, educators and innovators. The New York convening builds on the earlier convenings.
“While the doomsday debate asks whether AI could destroy humanity, we asked a different question: What is AI already doing to humanity?” said Deputy Secretary-General Mohammed. “If this technology is going to shape the human family, in all its diversity, everyone must have a voice in shaping it.”
“Whatever AI becomes, the measure of progress must still be what it makes possible for people,” the Deputy Secretary-General said.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, underscored AI’s potential to advance human development and the common good, from medicine and agriculture to education and culture. He stressed that such progress must be guided by a sound ethical and anthropological vision.
Quoting Pope Leo XIV, he warned that technological development without corresponding ethical and social progress risks “an increase in means without a growth in humanity.”
Rather than focusing only on what AI can do or how it should be governed, speakers explored a deeper question: what does AI mean for humanity itself? They examined how the technology is changing the ways people learn, work, connect, create and participate in society, and considered which dimensions of human experience should be protected and strengthened as AI becomes more capable.
Sessions
Discussions on AI and Global Human Development explored whether technological progress will translate into human progress. Speakers examined AI’s potential to advance education, science, connectivity and the SDGs, while stressing the need to address unequal access and ensure AI serves people rather than deepening existing divides.
Microsoft President Brad Smith warned of the technology’s dual potential. “AI can also, in effect, be turned against people,” he warned. Participants called for guardrails, broader access and keeping AI under human control.
Under AI and the Evolution of Human Civilization, speakers examined whether AI represents another chapter in humanity’s long history of technological transformation or something fundamentally different. They considered AI’s potential to accelerate scientific discovery and expand human capabilities, while asking what may be lost if technology displaces human relationships, community and learning.
They described AI as “an invention for making inventions,” opening new possibilities while requiring humanity to deliberately protect what makes us human.
The dialogue on AI and the Future We Choose focused on power, sovereignty, representation and the choices countries can make as AI develops. Speakers from Rwanda, Mexico and Sierra Leone emphasized building national capabilities, protecting cultural and linguistic diversity, and ensuring technology works for those most often left behind.
Sierra Leone Chief Minister David Sengeh questioned: “Whose humanity, whose values, whose ethics?” Speakers stressed that inclusive partnerships must help countries preserve their ability to shape their own digital futures.
A further conversation on Creativity and Humanity in the Age of AI brought artists and scientists together to examine authorship, originality, human expression and the value of creative work. Actor and UN Global Advocate for Human-centred Digital Governance, Joseph Gordon-Levitt argued that AI systems are built from human-created work and questioned what happens to human creativity when the economic incentives supporting it are eroded.
Astrophysicist and concert pianist Amir Siraj reflected on what technology cannot capture about human experience, asking what happens when young people receive answers without experiencing the process of learning and creating for themselves.
AI and Human Development Convenings Report and What comes next
The AI and Human Development Convenings Report reflects contributions from more than 130 participants from government, science, faith communities, business, academia, the arts, Indigenous communities and youth. It captures key questions, tensions and proposals raised across the dialogues and is intended to contribute to a broader global conversation on AI and human development.
Rather than seeking consensus, the series created space for reflection, principled debate and diverse cultural perspectives on how AI is affecting humanity and how humanity can shape the development of AI.
The initiative will now expand through country-led, intergenerational and community-based conversations, broadening participation and bringing questions surrounding artificial intelligence closer to the people and communities most affected by technological change in the lead up to the SDG Summit in 2027.
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About the UN Office for Partnerships
As the global gateway to the United Nations, the UN Office for Partnerships convenes and co-creates essential partnerships and programmes, as well as manages catalytic funding to accelerate solutions to keep the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Media Contacts
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