UN Approves 40-Member Global AI Panel Despite Strong U.S. Opposition

On Thursday, February 12, 2026, the United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to establish a new 40-member global scientific panel focused on understanding the impact and risks of artificial intelligence (AI) worldwide — a decision that passed despite strong objections from the United States and one other country. The vote, held in the Assembly’s 193-member chamber at U.N. headquarters in New York, resulted in 117 votes in favor, with only two nations — the United States and Paraguay — opposing the measure. Tunisia and Ukraine abstained from voting.

The panel was proposed and organized by U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, who described it as a “foundational step toward global scientific understanding of AI,” and emphasized the need for a multilateral response to rapid technological advances that are reshaping economies, societies, and global power dynamics. Guterres has framed the panel’s creation as part of a broader U.N. effort to help nations “engage on an equal footing” in discussions about AI governance, particularly given stark disparities in technical capacity between wealthy tech hubs and developing countries.

Purpose and Goals of the AI Panel

According to official statements from U.N. officials, the panel is intended to function as an independent scientific body that can assess the economic, social, ethical, and geopolitical effects of artificial intelligence technologies. Guterres and supporters argued that the panel’s work will fill a gap in the international system by producing rigorous, evidence-based insights into AI’s complex impacts — whether positive or negative — and offering member states data and analysis to guide policymaking, regulation, and cooperation.

Panel members are expected to serve three-year terms and are drawn from a broad range of disciplines, including computer science, economics, ethics, public policy, human rights, and technology research. The selection was made from more than 2,600 candidates reviewed by a team that included the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the U.N. Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies, and UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).

Among those named to the panel are several high-profile experts. Filipino journalist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa — whose work has highlighted the societal impacts of information technologies — is a member, alongside two Americans and two Chinese experts in AI. The American delegates include Vipin Kumar, a professor at the University of Minnesota with expertise in machine learning and data mining, and Martha Palmer, a retired linguistics professor whose research includes semantics and natural language processing. The Chinese members include Song Haitao, dean at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and director at the Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Research Institute, and Wang Jian, an expert in cloud-computing technologies.

U.S. Objections and Broader Geopolitical Tensions

Despite the broad approval, the vote exposed divisions over how international governance of AI should evolve. The United States, which is widely regarded as the global leader in artificial intelligence innovation, was one of only two countries to vote against the resolution. Lauren Lovelace, counselor at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, argued that the panel represented “a significant overreach of the U.N.’s mandate and competence.” She stated that the United States believes AI governance is not a matter for the U.N. to dictate, asserting that global innovation should be driven by like-minded nations cooperating on shared values rather than through what she described as “non-transparent international bodies.”

Lovelace’s statement also expressed a broader political concern: that international institutions may be influenced by authoritarian regimes seeking to use global norms to impose their own vision of technology — a vision she suggested could include expanded surveillance powers or controls that conflict with democratic principles. This objection reflects underlying tensions between major powers over how AI should be governed and what role international organizations should play in shaping its future.

Paraguay also voted against the resolution, though there has been less public explanation of its reasoning. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s abstention was linked to disagreements over the inclusion of a Russian AI expert, Andrei Neznamov, on the panel. Ukraine reportedly objected to Neznamov’s presence given the ongoing conflict between the two countries and concerns about Russia’s approach to AI governance and ethics.

What This Means for Global AI Governance

The creation of the panel signals a shift toward more structured international engagement on AI issues, even as debates continue about the proper balance between national sovereignty in innovation policies and collective global oversight. Proponents argue that AI affects shared global challenges — from employment shifts and economic inequality to misinformation, privacy, and security — and therefore demands coordinated scientific study and policy responses. Critics, particularly those aligned with the U.S. position, contend that centralization of authority could stifle innovation, constrain technological competitiveness, and empower actors with divergent values.

With the panel now approved, attention will turn to its initial work program, how its findings are communicated to member states, and the extent to which its recommendations influence national policies, international standards, or the work of other multilateral bodies. As AI continues to evolve rapidly, the world’s governments are clearly grappling not just with technological change, but with the politics of shaping and sharing the knowledge that surrounds it.