UPCOMING EVENT

Governing at the Speed of AI

A High-Level Evening on International Coordination for
Crisis Preparedness at UNGA 81

Thursday, September 24, 2026 | 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM, Delegates Dining Room, UN Headquarters

OVERVIEW

AI Safety Connect at UNGA 81
Thursday, 24 September 2026 | UN Headquarters

Governing at the Speed of AI is an invitation-only evening convening 300 heads of State, Ministers, senior diplomats, frontier AI leaders and leading experts at the United Nations Headquarters during the High-Level Week of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 81). As AI capabilities and risks advance at unprecedented speed, this gathering offers a rare setting to advance multilateral coordination toward safe, secure and trustworthy AI, align priorities across sectors and forge the relationships that international governance will require.


The event is hosted by AI Safety Connect, supported by Minderoo Foundation, sponsored by J. P. Morgan and co-hosted by the Permanent Missions of Brazil, Canada, Estonia, and Singapore to the United Nations, the Ministries for Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica and Finland, the Office of the Special Envoy on Technology within the Executive Office of the President of Kenya, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and United Nations Foundation, and additionally supported by the Centre pour la Sécurité de l'IA, Concordia AI, Fathom, the International Association for Safe and Ethical AI and the Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI).

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Confirmed Speakers

H.E. Alar Karis

President of Estonia

H.E. Alar Karis

President of Estonia

H.E. Dr. Justin Nsengiyumva

Prime Minister of Rwanda

H.E. Dr. Justin Nsengiyumva

Prime Minister of Rwanda

H.E. Paula Ingabire

Minister of ICT and Innovation, Rwanda

H.E. Paula Ingabire

Minister of ICT and Innovation, Rwanda

Senator Jerry McNerney

California State Senator, District 5

Senator Jerry McNerney

California State Senator, District 5

Dr. Andrew Forrest AO

Executive Chairman and Founder of Fortescue, Founder of Minderoo Foundation and Tattarang

Arthur Franzon

Deputy Ambassador for AI and Digital Affairs, France

Arthur Franzon

Deputy Ambassador for AI and Digital Affairs, France

Mr. Cyrus Hodes

Co-Founder, AI Safety Connect

Mr. Cyrus Hodes

Co-Founder, AI Safety Connect

Chris Meserole

Executive Director, Frontier Model Forum

Chris Meserole

Executive Director, Frontier Model Forum

Dr. Claire Melamed

Vice-President, UN Foundation

Dr. Claire Melamed

Vice-President, UN Foundation

David Lametti

Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in New York

David Lametti

Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in New York

Dr. Gabriela Ramos

Dr. Gabriela Ramos

Senior fellow at Institute for Artificial Intelligence Policy and Practice (IAPS), former Additional DG UNESCO and former OECD Chief of Staff and Sherpa to the G20

Jaan Tallinn

Founder of Skype and Kazaa, Investor

Jaan Tallinn

Founder of Skype and Kazaa, Investor

Haoliang Xu

UN Under-Secretary-General, UNDP Associate Administrator

Haoliang Xu

UN Under-Secretary-General, UNDP Associate Administrator

Maria Ressa

CEO, Rappler & Co-Chair, Independent Scientific Panel on AI

Maria Ressa

CEO, Rappler & Co-Chair, Independent Scientific Panel on AI

Mary Robinson

Mary Robinson

First woman President of Ireland (former) and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Mary Robinson

Mary Robinson

First woman President of Ireland (former) and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Michael Sellitto

Head of International Policy, Anthropic

Michael Sellitto

Head of International Policy, Anthropic

Natasha Crampton

Natasha Crampton

Vice President and Chief Responsible AI Officer, Microsoft

Natasha Crampton

Natasha Crampton

Vice President and Chief Responsible AI Officer, Microsoft

Mr. Nicolas Miailhe

Co-Founder, AI Safety Connect

Mr. Nicolas Miailhe

Co-Founder, AI Safety Connect

Robert Opp

Chief Digital Officer, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Xiao Qian

Xiao Qian

Vice-Dean for AI International Governance, Deputy Director, Center for International Security, Tsinghua University

Xiao Qian

Xiao Qian

Vice-Dean for AI International Governance, Deputy Director, Center for International Security, Tsinghua University

Prof. Yoshua Bengio

Scientific Director, LawZero & Co-Chair, Independent Scientific Panel on AI

Prof. Yoshua Bengio

Scientific Director, LawZero & Co-Chair, Independent Scientific Panel on AI

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TENTATIVE PROGRAM

TENTATIVE PROGRAM

6:00PM - 6:20PM

Welcome & Doors Open

6:20PM - 6:30PM

Welcome Address

6:30PM - 6:40PM

Opening Keynotes (Head of State Level)

6:40PM - 6:45PM

Rapporteur

6:45PM - 7:10PM


7:30PM-7:50PM


Government in Action Panel

7:10PM - 7:20PM

Transition + Buffer time (10 mins)

7:20PM - 7:45PM

Panel: Operationalizing Crisis Preparedness

7:45PM - 7:55PM

Transition + Buffer time (10 mins)

7:55PM - 8:00PM

Fireside Chat to Introduce the Industry Panel

8:00PM - 8:15PM

Industry Panel/Lighting Round Option

8:15PM - 8:35PM

Closing Remarks

8:35PM - 9:05PM

Reception Break

9:05PM - 9:25PM

Reception Briefs

9:25PM - 11:00PM

Reception Extension

Hosted by AI Safety Connect, Supported by Minderoo Foundation

Where the world meets to make AI safe

Where the world meets to make AI safe

Where the world meets to make AI safe

Where the world meets to make AI safe