Faisal Mahmud
26 September 2026•Update: 26 September 2026
Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan warned Saturday that artificial intelligence is advancing faster than the world’s understanding of its risks, calling for stronger safeguards and international rules while insisting that humans must remain ultimately in control.
Addressing the 81st UN General Assembly in New York, Balakrishnan described AI as “arguably the most urgent frontier,” saying the technology offered extraordinary potential but also posed risks ranging from autonomous systems escaping human control to its use by rogue actors to develop biological or other weapons of mass destruction.
“The genie is already out of the bottle,” he said, arguing that halting AI development was unrealistic amid superpower competition and strong commercial incentives.
Comparing AI development to driving a high-performance car, Balakrishnan said innovation provided the “powerful engine,” but safe deployment also required “good brakes” — including rigorous testing, clear limits on autonomous systems and mechanisms for human intervention.
“Most importantly, human beings must ultimately remain in control and accountable,” he said, asking whether anyone would want “the nuclear button” in the hands of an AI.
Balakrishnan also warned that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz amid the Persian Gulf war was putting the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) through a “severe stress test.”
He said transit passage through international straits was a right, not a privilege subject to fees or tolls, and warned that allowing any country to veto navigational freedoms could have global consequences.
The strait normally carries around a fifth of global oil supplies, he said, with its disruption driving up energy prices, damaging supply chains and stranding seafarers.
