December 05, 2025

AI x Multilateralism: AI Empire or Global Commons? Why Inclusive Governance Matters, with Dr. Rachel Adams

34 minutes

This is AI x Multilateralism, a mini-series on The Next Page, where experts help us unpack the many ideas and issues at the nexus of AI and international cooperation.

AI has the dual potential to transform our world for the better, while also deepening serious inequalities. In this episode we speak to Dr. Rachel Adams, Founder and CEO of the Global Center on AI Governance and author of The New Empire of AI: The Future of Global Inequality. She shares why Africa-led and Majority World-led research and policy are essential for equitable AI governance that's grounded in the realities of people everywhere.

She reflects on:

why the work of the Center's flagship Global Index on Responsible AI and its African Observatory on Responsible AI are bringing much-needed research and evidence to ensure AI governance is fair and inclusive.

her thoughts on the UN General Assembly's 2025 resolutions to establish an International Scientific Panel on AI and a Global Dialogue on AI Governance, urging true inclusion of diverse voices, indigenous perspectives, and public input

why we need to treat AI infrastructure as an AI Global Commons

and, the power of local-language AI and public literacy in ensuring we harness the most transformative aspects of AI for our world.

Resources mentioned:

The Global Center on AI Governance

The Center's Global Index on Responsible AI

The Center's African Observatory on Responsible AI, and its research series Africa and the Big Debates on AI

Production:

Guest: Dr. Rachel Adams

Host, production and editing: Natalie Alexander Julien

Recorded & produced at the Commons, United Nations Library & Archives Geneva

Podcast Music credits:

Sequence: https://uppbeat.io/track/img/sequence

Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/img/sequence

License code: 6ZFT9GJWASPTQZL0

#AI #Multilateralism #UN #Africa #AIGovernance

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By United Nations Library & Archives Geneva

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