Urgent Call for UN AI Watchdog Like IAEA to Curb Risks, Including Nigerian Election Deepfakes

Premium Times columnist Wole Olaoye warns that without global oversight, artificial intelligence could spiral beyond human control, urging the United Nations to create an AI watchdog modelled on the International Atomic Energy Agency. He draws a parallel between today’s AI anxieties and 19th‑century fears over artificial insemination, both seen as threats to human uniqueness. The piece highlights Pope Leo XIV’s May 2026 encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, which condemns unchecked AI for eroding critical thinking, enabling autonomous warfare, displacing workers, and concentrating power in tech monopolies. For Nigeria, the author flags deepfakes as a looming threat to the upcoming political season, noting that synthetic media could make it impossible to distinguish truth from fabrication. He also cites broader dangers—zero‑day attacks on power grids, water supplies, and transport networks; AI‑driven financial crashes; and mass surveillance that could erase privacy. Olaoye argues that setting clear rules and monitoring mechanisms now will build trust and prevent AI from “gaming” humanity.

Will you support calls for an international AI regulator, scrutinise political content for deepfakes, and push for local policies that guard against job‑losing automation?

SOURCE: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/opinion/912822-before-the-robot-enslaves-us-all-by-wole-olaoye.html