Technology, Power, and the Reframing of Human Rights Responsibilities

(Originally published on the Harvard Kennedy School website)

On Wednesday, 7 January, the Trump administration announced the withdrawal of the United States from 66 organizations, half of which are linked to the UN. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the oldest agency in the UN system, is not affected. Nevertheless, the administration had already set the tone during the ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference, held last November in Baku, signaling a clear recalibration of its engagement within the UN system.

In a plenary statement, the U.S. delegation announced its disengagement from several ad hoc groups, arguing that negotiations had drifted from the ITU’s core mandate into ideological or politicized territory. It called for a “back to basics” approach, limiting the ITU’s work to telecommunications and ICT development, and rejected references it viewed as infringing on national sovereignty, including the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.

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Privacy Talk: Why did you start to work for the intersection of technology, development, and human rights?

The full interview with transcript is here.

From Policy to Procurement: Operationalizing Trustworthy AI

When AI Meets Public Contracts: Bridging the Gap Between Principles and Practice

Session at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva

In Geneva and beyond, much of the debate on AI governance still revolves around abstraction—principles, ethical frameworks, good intentions. Yet as AI becomes embedded in the machinery of both states and corporations, an urgent question arises: how do we ensure that public procurement and deployment of AI respects human dignity?

This is the focus of a new report from the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights. Titled Artificial Intelligence Procurement and Deployment: Ensuring Alignment with the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, it addresses a critical blind spot: what happens when public institutions and private actors use—but do not develop—AI systems?

I had the opportunity to be consulted during the preparation of this report. I believe it marks a necessary step forward. But it is only a step.

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Losing Control: AI Giants, National Security, and the Case for Smarter Governance

Entrance Sign for the Expert Workshop on AI, Rule of Law, and Human Rights — Geneva, 8 May 2025

I was invited last week to participate in an Expert Meeting on the Rule of Law and Human Rights Aspects of Using Artificial Intelligence for Counter-Terrorism Purposes, organized by the Geneva Centre for Security Policy in partnership with the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and the Swiss government. The discussions, though focused on legal safeguards, surveillance, and freedom of expression, brought into sharp focus a broader question: who actually governs AI today?

And perhaps more urgently: can public institutions still govern it alone?

This raises a fundamental challenge for the future of democratic governance: are we witnessing the erosion of public control over technologies that increasingly define our societies?

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Governing Data and AI in Sensitive Contexts: Reflections from CSTD28

Panel Discussion on Data and AI Governance at the United Nations, CSTD28 Side Event – Geneva, April 2025

On April 9, 2025, I had the honour of moderating the second panel of the OHCHR side event at the 28th session of the UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. The session, titled “Data and AI Governance in Human Rights-Sensitive Contexts”, was part of a broader event exploring frameworks and use cases for responsible AI deployment.

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