The UN convened young people from across the world in New York on Wednesday to deliberate on Artificial Intelligence (AI) governance.

Over 600 young people discussed how AI can support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the delegates put forward a “Youth-led Declaration on AI Policy and Governance” that will direct the UN’s Global Digital Compact and other initiatives. The declaration covers “shared youth perspectives, key principles, and concrete recommendations, to be carried forward into the United Nations system.”

This adds to previous efforts to engage with youth regarding decisions on AI, such as the Global Dialogue on AI Governance and the International Telecommunication Union Secretary-General’s Youth Advisory Board. It also occurs as governments struggle with the cybersecurity threats of AI. This month, the European Commission tightened oversight on AI companies to combat deepfakes, and INTERPOL reported that AI is connected to more than half of cybercrime throughout Africa. Organizations have recently urged the US Congress to remove certain AI provisions from legislation too.

The summit occurred on International Youth Day, which “recognizes that while young people’s lives are shaped by different national and local realities, their aspirations are remarkably similar.” UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that the “United Nations stands with youth everywhere in their call for investment and inclusion [so] let us build a present and future where every generation can thrive.”

However, one day earlier, the International Labor Organization shared its findings that “6.1 per cent of jobs currently held by young people aged 15 to 29 fall in the categories of those most exposed to AI and, thus, most at risk to some level of AI-task (or job) replacement.” The report explained that even if “only 10 per cent of the jobs exposed to AI were to disappear in full, it would translate into 5.6 million employed youth…facing unemployment.”

Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs Felipe Paullier concluded:

Young people must not only benefit from these systems; they must help to design them, because meaningful youth participation leads to better decisions, to stronger institutions, and to more inclusive societies… Together we can build a future that is more inclusive, more resilient, and more human-centered.