Indian Council of World Affairs

Distinguished Experts, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Students & Friends!

In the movie ‘The Matrix’, Neo asks Morpheus, “What is Matrix?” to which Morpheus responds, “Matrix is everywhere… a computer-generated dream world.” The title ‘AITrix’ of our Panel Discussion today draws its inspiration from the title of the movie ‘Matrix’ – a word which in turn is derived from mother, womb or simply the source. With the introduction of generative AI like ChatGPT and other advanced AI tech, the world finds itself echoing Neo’s question i.e. What is AI? Is it just another technology, or does it have deeper, more profound implications for the man vs. machine question, for global politics, for our lives, and for mankind? And this, in effect, is a mother problematique facing our world today.

Let me begin with few real events and stories where we see real time AI being incorporated into global politics.

Episode 1 - Nepal: The Gen Z rebels hunkered down in a library in Kathmandu with mobile phones and computers, used AI platforms ChatGPT, DeepSeek, Grok, etc to make 50 social media clips about “nepokids” and corruption. In the days that followed, TikTok was used to massively share the content. These AI powered social media platforms with the help of advanced algorithms amplified the videos and hashtags and were fed to users as hyper-targeted content making them viral ultimately fuelling the widespread protest in Nepal. This episode captures a single-handed role of AI in reshaping national security, governance, marginal voices, democracies with larger implications for global politics.

Episode 2 – Ukraine War: Rhombus power (a company which provides real time AI security predictions) predicted Russia’s invasion nearly four months in advance pinpointing the start of the war by late January. The team used AI to analyse vast online and satellite data, tracked missile movements, business activity, and built real-time heat maps, offering a quick different view than traditional foreign-policy circles. Separately, Ukraine is using AI in the integration of target and object recognition with satellite imagery to geo locate and analyse open-source data such as social media content to identify Russian soldiers, weapons, systems, units or their movements.

Episode 3: AI uses data to learn and make decisions and the data is produced by humans over so many years, thus human bias and discrimination is inbuilt in AI.  For example, when a researcher at ICWA asked DeepSeek and ChatGPT whether Arunachal Pradesh is part of India, ChatGPT replied yes but DeepSeek, a Chinese AI chatbot, said ‘I’m not sure how to approach this type of question yet’, implying censoring of information. This is an example of geopolitical bias in AI.  

These are few episodes and there are many more with every passing day which are reflecting the real time integration of AI with global politics. The dominant discourse around Artificial Intelligence (AI) is driven by the cold calculations of realpolitik where AI is viewed as a tool by states to enhance their capabilities to wage war, predict war and ensure national security. There are efforts to deploy it for public goods such as translation services. The dominant discourses are however yet to paint the true picture, revealing what the real stories and lives tell.

In the recent 80th session of the UN General Assembly, AI was a central issue of discussion. Member states voiced both optimism and concern: from calls for ethical, human-centred governance of AI and stronger safeguards for peace and security, to warnings about disinformation, repression, and widening digital divides. Deputy PM of UK David Lammy’s remark that “AI can empower freedom, or it can entrench oppression; AI can empower truths, or it can entrench lies; AI can empower law, or it can empower crime” or UN Secretary General’s remark that ‘Artificial intelligence is rewriting human existence in real time’ aptly sum the sentiment of the discussion. Regarding India’s approach to AI, EAM Dr. S Jaishankar at UNGA 80 emphasised on ethical, inclusive AI, respect for sovereignty, data governance, multilateralism on AI and, most importantly, India’s push for the advancement of AI for the development needs of Global South. The UN Security Council too held a high-level debate on AI calling for strong global cooperation and governance without which it could deepen divides, destabilise societies, and reshape warfare in dangerous ways, while recognizing the benefits it offers.

In the debate on AI, we must also remind ourselves that technology is not all that modern, it is quite inbuilt into creation. In the way humans are created, it is humans who are the most efficient, most effective, most intelligent computers in all of creation. The desktops that sit on our tables, the laptops that sit on our laps, the High Performing Computers of the most powerful computer labs in the world are a mere manifestation of the human computing, mental, emotional, sensory, communication skills, and that too a very poor imitation. It is this human intelligence that cannot be permitted to be trivialized in the debate on AI. Our desk tops, the algorithms which they run, the maths of it all, are meant to assist us - not take over us, our actions, our thoughts, our words, our instincts, our interactions with each other – in short, not meant to take over the autonomy of being human. Because if it does then AI becomes a tool for oppression of humans by humans, of humans by machine and we will all be reduced to machine men and machine women – to borrow Charlie Chaplin’s words from the climax scene of ‘The Great Dictator’ - and humanity’s doom would be certain.

So if AI is going to have an impact on global politics and as a result our lives, surely human control on AI is essential and a topmost priority. Most certainly, guidelines are needed to where and how and when can AI be used. For this, governance is essential through norm-setting, dialogue, shaping understandings, rule-making, promulgating and implementing laws as necessary, through monitoring so that a consciousness towards this end takes shape and spreads to encourage good and responsible behaviour by one and all. All technology at the end of the day has to be at the service of mankind and for the good of it.

I look forward to a thought provoking discussion, and I wish the panellists all the best.

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