The United Nations’ spirit animal for artificial intelligence is a petite humanoid robot named Sophia that swears she can run the world better than any human. “Think of me as a personification of our dreams for the future of AI,” she says in her corporate bio.
Sophia, a creation of Hanson Robotics, is the U.N. Development Programme’s first robot innovation ambassador, a job that places her at the forefront of the U.N. public relations campaign to secure a role for managing a technological revolution that promises — and threatens — to alter the way we make peace and war, end poverty, and deliver aid to the world’s neediest.
Her arrival on the world stage — she has appeared on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” — comes at a time when the U.N. leadership and key powers are trying to carve out an ambitious role in erecting the world’s digital guardrails and use AI for a range of tasks, from predicting the flight of refugees and conducting real time negotiations with Indigenous communities to regulating the use of autonomous lethal weapons on the battlefield.
About the author
Colum Lynch
Colum Lynch is an award-winning reporter and Senior Global Reporter for Devex. He covers the intersection of development, diplomacy, and humanitarian relief at the United Nations and beyond. Prior to Devex, Colum reported on foreign policy and national security for Foreign Policy Magazine and the Washington Post. Colum was awarded the 2011 National Magazine Award for digital reporting for his blog Turtle Bay. He has also won an award for groundbreaking reporting on the U.N.’s failure to protect civilians in Darfur.
