UN calls for 'urgent action' to rein in AI while Microsoft published code of AI conduct

The United Nations rights chief has urged countries and frontier artificial intelligence companies to act swiftly to address the potential risks posed by advanced AI. In a letter sent to governments and AI developers, Volker Turk warned that the world is on the brink of irreversible change that could affect every aspect of human life.

He called for urgent multilateral action to govern these advanced models in accordance with international human rights law. The letter comes amid a heated debate over whether the development of AI should be slowed down. US President Donald Trump and key allies have resisted calls for a slowdown, while Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has urged companies to pace the development of frontier AI.

Microsoft's AI division has published a code of conduct for its artificial intelligence models, with a focus on "Humanist AI" that remains under human control. The company's move is partly in response to security concerns, following recent hacking campaigns aided by AI agents. Microsoft joins a growing list of AI developers, including Meta, Google, and OpenAI, who have received Turk's letter, but industry co-regulation is deemed insufficient on its own.