AI cannot be left to ‘whims of a few billionaires’: U.N. chief Antonio Guterres

United Nations (U.N.) chief Antonio Guterres warned know-how leaders on Thursday (February 19, 2026) of the dangers of Artificial Intelligence (AI), saying its future cannot be left to “the whims of a few billionaires”.

Speaking at a global AI summit in India, the U.N. chief known as on tech tycoons to assist a $3 billion world fund to guarantee open entry to the fast-advancing know-how for all. “AI must belong to everyone,” he stated.

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“The future of AI cannot be decided by a handful of countries — or left to the whims of a few billionaires,” he added, warning the world risked deepening inequality until pressing steps had been taken.

“Done right, AI can… accelerate breakthroughs in medicine, expand learning opportunities, strengthen food security, bolster climate action and disaster preparedness and improve access to vital public services,” he stated. “But it can also deepen inequality, amplify bias and fuel harm.”

The U.N. has arrange an AI scientific advisory physique to assist nations make selections in regards to the revolutionary know-how. Mr. Guterres warned that individuals should be shielded from exploitation, and that “no child should be a test subject for unregulated AI”.

He pressed for world guardrails to guarantee oversight and accountability, and the creation of “Global Fund on AI” to construct primary capability.

“Our target is $3 billion,” he instructed the convention, which incorporates nationwide leaders in addition to tech CEOs, together with Sam Altman of OpenAI and Google’s Sundar Pichai.

“That’s less than one per cent of the annual revenue of a single tech company. A small price for AI diffusion that benefits all, including the businesses building AI.” Without funding, “many countries will be logged out of the AI age”, exacerbating world divides,” he stated.

He additionally cautioned that as AI’s vitality and water calls for soar, knowledge centres should change to clear energy, somewhat than “shift costs to vulnerable communities”.