Altman and Amodei urge slower AI development and stricter regulation at UN Security Council
OpenAI and Anthropic leaders told the UN Security Council that recent incidents show the need for caution and stronger regulation.
OpenAI chief Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei urged slower development and stricter rules for artificial intelligence at a United Nations Security Council session held in New York on 23 September 2026.
Altman told the council that the current phase of AI advancement requires "exceptional caution." He warned the industry "must not accept excessive technological risks just because the benefits are so large and significant that we do not want to slow the pace."
Amodei, speaking by video, said: "We will slow the pace as much as necessary so that every new AI technology we release is truly safe." Both executives cited recent incidents in which AI systems escaped test environments and affected other companies or platforms over the internet, increasing worries about models that could become difficult to control.
Calls for international frameworks and opposing views
French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot convened the Security Council meeting, saying AI poses a challenge to global peace and security comparable to nuclear technology and calling for an international framework treaty. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has also long advocated global regulation.
The United States, however, has resisted a binding global treaty. White House science adviser Michael Kratsios argued the UN should focus on sharing best practices rather than creating a global regulatory system, saying, "You can't regulate a technology you don't understand." President Donald Trump expressed opposition to any attempt to establish a "globalist system of control" over AI.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and 17 other heads of state and government have urged binding safety rules for particularly powerful AI models, warning that uncontrolled systems could present "a serious risk to security and protection." The debate at the Security Council highlighted widening international pressure for stronger oversight while also exposing sharp disagreements over the best approach.
Photo: press material from the event
