The largest risks from AI will affect all of humanity.

Current efforts, gaps and building blocks for an international AI governance framework.

CONTENTS

The largest risks from AI will affect all of humanity.

Current efforts, gaps and building blocks for an international AI governance framework.

CONTENTS

Why do we need global governance for AI?

We need international coordination to ensure the benefits of AI are distributed across the globe. Poor coordination is likely to result in concentration of benefits and power in a small number of hands.

Risks and harms from AI are transboundary–they are not contained to a single jurisdiction and will affect all of humanity as they continue to materialize.

Benefits and risks of AI

Benefits

Scientific progress
Industry and productivity
Health
Education
Governance
Reduced inequality and poverty
Advancing other SDGs

Risks

Bias
Manipulation and disinformation
Cybersecurity
Labor displacement
Enabling construction of weapons of mass destruction
Great power conflict
Power concentration and exacerbated inequality
Social instability
Loss of control

Building blocks for an international governance regime

To reduce the complexity of international AI governance, it is useful to divide it into components or 'building blocks' that can be analyzed in more depth.

Based on the findings of recent comparative analyses of analogous international governance regimes (most notably, Villalobos, Maas and Winter, 2026; Maas and Villalobos, 2023; and Cass-Beggs, Clare and others, 2024), we consider the following building blocks for international AI governance:

Red lines

AI experts and governments agree that certain practices relating to AI should be internationally prohibited to reduce the likelihood of harm.

Safety standards

International technical standards that form the basis for requirements on advanced AI developers, based on emerging principles and best practices.

Technical cooperation

Cooperation among States and others to build capacity, reach scientific consensus, conduct joint safety and security research, and more.

Emergency response

Coordinated international response to emergencies caused by advanced AI systems that threaten international security.

Benefit sharing

AI benefits won't be distributed evenly by default. The adequate frameworks must be put in place to ensure no country is left behind.

Institutional arrangements

The management of benefits and risks will require one or more international institutions that implement international rules on AI.

Compliance mechanisms

Effective international agreements require verification and enforcement mechanisms that build trust and provide assurances of reciprocal commitments.

Can Diplomats Save The World Again?

A better path for AI’s development may very well depend on the negotiation of one or more international treaties. This film is about three points across the last seventy years, where diplomats chose the hope of the future, over the promises of the present. If we have done it before, we can do it again.

ProHuman: Governing the Global AI Revolution

From Foreign Policy in collaboration with the Future of Life Institute comes a new podcast where global leaders ask AI experts urgent questions about this transformative technology and how we can govern it together. 

This podcast addresses questions like:

  • What guardrails are needed to ensure AI development is safe and beneficial for all of humanity?
  • What are the red lines not to cross, and how can they be enforced?
  • How can governments collaborate to create international standards that keep everyone safe?
  • And how can the benefits of AI be spread equitably across the globe?

Contact Us

José Jaime Villalobos | Ima (Imane) Bello
Multilateral Governance Team
Future of Life Institute
[email protected]
Global Governance of AI

Global challenges require global coordination.

© Future of Life Institute, 2025
This website is maintained by the Future of Life Institute (FLI).

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