Microsoft at the United Nations General Assembly 2023

Thank you for joining us for what has been an inspiring two weeks of conversation, debate and connection. We look forward to seeing you at UNGA79!

Wednesday, Sept. 27th, 2023: High level week may have been drawing to a close, but Friday at UNGA still saw plenty of activity.

Microsoft’s UN Affairs office in New York hosted a GZERO Media reception to mark UNGA 78 and look back at a week of Global Stage discussions – highlighting issues at the intersection of technology, politics and society.

A partnership between Microsoft and GZERO, the Global Stage ran a series of interviews and livestreams during UNGA, on topics including expanding internet access, trust and AI, and protecting people online.

You can watch the events here:

Creating opportunities for digital development will support the resilience, health and wellbeing of millions of people living in some of the least developed countries.

Microsoft is working to put transformational technology, such as AI, in the hands of people across the globe, and equip them with the skills to use it.

To help do this, we launched the Microsoft Digital Development Program at UNGA78 – and on Friday, Microsoft Philanthropies Corporate Vice President Kate Behncken and the Prime Minister of Cabo Verde Ulisses Correia e Silva met to formalize a strategic partnership to drive growth and development with digital solutions.

As an SDG Advocate, Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith had a busy schedule during UNGA78, discussing technology’s role as a catalyst for change with a host of leaders.

Here he is at the Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI) speaking to Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations and Chair of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group.

On September 20th at UNGA, an event called Pioneering Progress: AI for a Better World showcased the vital role of artificial intelligence in addressing global challenges and realizing the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

A host of senior UN leaders were in attendance to discuss the transformational potential of AI. Some of the key themes were captured as illustrations – examples of which you can see here (above and below).

Friday, Sept. 22nd, 2023: Among the big themes at UNGA78 on Thursday was Africa’s potential to become a global economic powerhouse. Under the banner of #UnstoppableAfrica, the Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI) convened leaders to showcase the continent’s promise.

According to GABI, an initiative of the UN Global Compact, Africa is positioned to be the most important driver of global business with a $2.5 trillion market opportunity. Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith told the panel that the widespread adoption of technology will be crucial to realizing Africa's potential.

The launch of the Microsoft Digital Development Program at UNGA78 earlier this week demonstrates our commitment to Africa and our belief that nations can accelerate their development with the adoption of AI and other advanced technologies. The program is helping our first partner nations, Angola, Cape Verde and Ethiopia, to modernize industries, upgrade infrastructure and develop more advanced services.

The buzz around AI just keeps getting louder here at UNGA78, with world leaders, civil society and the private sector coming together to discuss countless potential use cases.

At an event hosted by GZERO Media, Reimagining Tomorrow: Breakthroughs In Data and AI for a More Resilient World, leaders discussed how AI can help predict crises before they happen, and respond to disasters, “earlier, faster and in a more targeted and dignified way.”

Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith explored the prospect of putting AI and data to use in the context of natural disasters, telling the panel: “One of the most fascinating things we’ve learned, is the extraordinary partnership you can build between data in a tech company, and NGOs, the United Nations system, USAID and others,” adding that high tech data can accelerate the often manual, low tech rescue work in disaster zones. 

You can watch a recording of the session here:

In a separate interview with GZERO, Natasha Crampton, Microsoft's Chief Responsible AI Officer, explained that to get the maximum benefit from AI, there must be strong regulatory and governance frameworks around the technology.

We are now in an era where the front lines in warfare are both digital and military.

The war in Ukraine began with a massive cyberattack on systems controlling key government operations, public utilities and the civilian services.

On Thursday at UNGA78, Microsoft and Foreign Policy held an event that looked at their report, Digital Front Lines. The report takes a deep dive into the risks of hybrid warfare and how multistakeholder partnerships can limit the damage caused by cyberwarfare. 

Click on the link below to see the key findings or read the full report.

As the world’s climate continues to warm, access to clean, safe water is an ever more urgent priority. UNGA78 addressed this issue in a session entitled: Why Water Matters: Accelerating Progress on SDG 6.

Hollywood actor and water activist Matt Damon highlighted the importance of collaborations with companies like Microsoft noting that, “having Microsoft on board sends a strong signal to other corporates” regarding the importance of water access and water infrastructure for all.

Joining Damon on the panel, Microsoft’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Melanie Nakagawa, spoke of Microsoft’s 2030 sustainability goals, which include being a carbon negative, water positive and zero waste company that protects ecosystems.

Nakagawa also outlined the five pillars that comprise Microsoft’s approach to being water positive which include: reducing water use in the company’s global operations, replenishing more water than the company consumes, helping to provide water and sanitation access to people across the world, driving innovation and data digitization and advocating for better water policies globally. 

Nakagawa told the panel that AI could be used to detect leaks in distribution systems, which according to the World Bank, result in the loss of 30% of the world’s piped water before it ever reaches the customer.

You can watch the full session here.

With the multiple use cases for AI being discussed at UNGA78, putting the technology in the hands of as many people as possible is a priority for Microsoft. On Thursday, at an event unrelated to UNGA, our Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella was in New York to launch Microsoft Copilot, a platform he called an everyday AI companion.

In short, Copilot will incorporate the context and intelligence of the web, your work data and what you are doing in the moment on your PC to provide better assistance.

For more on Copilot’s capabilities check out the post below.

Thursday, Sept. 21st, 2023: The exchange of ideas that defines High Level Week at the UN General Assembly is in full flow here in New York City, and the potential for AI to help us create a more sustainable, inclusive and peaceful world is part of many of the conversations.

On Wednesday, the SDG Pavilion was center stage, hosting a variety of leaders as they explored how AI can help accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. 

At a panel in the SDG Pavilion, AI and Innovation: Imagine Winning, Brad Smith took part in a vibrant discussion on leveraging the power of AI to push forward progress on the SDGs.

Earlier in the week, the UN Secretary General António Guterres told UNGA 78 that only 15% of the goals are on track to be achieved by the target date of 2030.

Brad Smith told the panel there are specific use cases for AI that could drive forward sustainability, including: “enabling AI to automate the electrical grid or the water supply, or the control of all the driverless cars on the road.” 

Recognizing the inherent risks around the role of AI in controlling public infrastructure, Smith added that robust regulatory and licensing frameworks would need to be put in place to ensure AI operated safely in all situations in which it was deployed.

At a different event, Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith was a panel hosted by Microsoft and GZERO Media discussing ways AI can help to address terrorism. He was joined on the panel by Dame Jacinda Ardern, the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, who was in office when a terrorist attacked worshippers at a number of mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch. The attack was streamed live online, and a movement to eradicate online extremism was born. 

Hearing the Christchurch Call: Collaboration in the Age of AI, which you can watch in full here, looked at ways of advancing the Christchurch Call, a community of over 120 governments, online service providers, and civil society organizations acting together to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online.

Ardern explained that the Christchurch Call has 25 commitments aimed at ensuring there is never again a livestream of a terror attack and no place for violent extremist content on the internet.  

Addressing the panel, Brad Smith said: “Technology, particularly over the last 300 years, has been the biggest catalyst for constant change.” He went on to urge leaders to ask themselves, “whether we fundamentally have the right governance pillars for societies around the world to be agile and effective in protecting the public.” Smith urged a focus on technology to build those protections.

UNGA78 also heard how AI can help forge a path toward a more prosperous, just, and sustainable world, including by protecting democracy and fundamental rights.

In a session called Pioneering Progress: AI for a Better World, hosted by Microsoft Philanthropies, Brad Smith spoke with Karim A. Khan, a prosecutor for the International Criminal Court.

Khan said that international law practitioners must embrace technology to have a greater impact, and that to bend the arc towards justice, partnerships between the public and private sector are vital.

There’s more at the link below on how the partnership between Microsoft and the International Criminal Court is levering the power of technology to uphold human rights.

As we head into the final days of High Level Week here at UNGA, panelists at a session hosted by the Concordia Summit were looking ahead to the next UN Climate Change Conference (also known as COP28), scheduled to be held in the UAE in November and December 2023.

Microsoft’s Chief Sustainability Officer Melanie Nakagawa joined the panel to share learnings from our journey towards becoming a truly sustainable organization. 

With sobering warnings of slow progress on the SDGs a running theme at UNGA78, leaders here are reassessing the agenda for COP28. Melanie Nakagawa said optimizing carbon markets would be crucial.

Continuing the theme of the transformative potential of AI, Microsoft is collaborating with the UN on Early Warnings for All. The initiative is working to ensure everyone on the planet is protected from large weather, water or climate events through early-warning systems by the end of 2027. Juan M. Lavista Ferres of the Microsoft AI for Good Research Lab has written about the role of AI in this project here:

Wednesday, Sept. 20th, 2023: World leaders have begun giving their addresses to the General Debate here at UNGA78 in New York.

A global regulatory framework for AI, advancing progress on climate change goals and protecting fundamental rights topped the agenda in the opening speeches.

On Tuesday, U.S. President Joe Biden called on his fellow leaders to work together on AI regulation, saying the technology promises “enormous potential and enormous peril.”

President Biden called for multistakeholder partnerships at a global level to ensure AI is developed and deployed responsibly, saying: “I’m committed to working through this institution and other international bodies and directly with leaders around the world, including our competitors, to ensure we harness the power of artificial intelligence for good, while protecting our citizens from its profound risk.”

UN Secretary General António Guterres called for a “Global Digital Compact” in his opening comments to the General Debate on Tuesday.

Suggesting the formation of a regulatory body modeled on organizations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency or the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Guterres urged “governments, regional organizations, the private sector and civil society – to mitigate the risks of digital technologies, and identify ways to harness their benefits for the good of humanity.”

Guterres also delivered a strongly-worded message to world leaders to redouble efforts to protect fundamental rights and to move faster to prevent the worst potential effects of climate change.

The UN head urged assembled presidents and prime ministers to uphold the dignity and worth of every person and be determined to realize the Sustainable Development Goals and leave no one behind.

Getting the Sustainable Development Goals back on track is a major theme at UNGA78. At the halfway point to the deadline of 2030, Guterres says only 15% of the initiatives set out eight years ago are on track.

The UN is hosting a special “half-time” SDG Summit at UNGA78 – an effort to accelerate action to ensure the goals are achieved. Microsoft is a committed partner of the United Nations, and we are working closely with the UN to advance progress on the SDGs.

Chris Sharrock, Vice President, UN Affairs and International Organizations at Microsoft is spending a lot of time at the city’s new landmark – the SDG Pavilion – working alongside world leaders as leaders at UNGA78 as they build momentum towards a more sustainable and inclusive world.

Tuesday, Sept. 19th, 2023: Artificial intelligence is a big talking point here at UNGA78. This is the first UN General Assembly where world leaders, civil society activists and the private sector are coming together to debate how generative AI will shape the future.

On Monday, delegates heard how AI can be used to protect civilians in conflict zones, with real-world examples from Ukraine. AI is protecting people caught up in the conflict, conserving heritage sites and documenting the actions of combatants to increase accountability in war zones.

At an event hosted by the White House, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed UNGA78 on the potential of AI to help create a more equitable world for all and drive progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Blinken told attendees:

“We have to use every tool at our disposal – including artificial intelligence – to get the SDGs back on track. Now, experts estimate that AI could advance progress on nearly 80% of the SDGs and their targets. Already, we’ve got AI systems being deployed to forecast extreme weather events and the impacts that they have; to improve agricultural productivity to fight global hunger; to predict, to prepare for, and respond to outbreaks of disease and new viruses; to build the clean energy infrastructure for a healthier future.”

You can watch Secretary Blinken’s address in full here:

Speaking at the same event, Microsoft’s Juan M. Lavista Ferres, Chief Scientist and Lab director at the Microsoft AI for Good Research Lab, detailed how AI can help protect infants from avoidable blindness. He cited an example of AI models that run on smartphones that can diagnose a condition that causes preventable blindness in young children. This is one way that Microsoft is contributing to SDG 3: Good Health and Well Being. 

Technology is empowering low- and middle-income nations to accelerate development and create vibrant digital economies. Launched at UNGA78, the Microsoft Digital Development Program is helping partner nations Angola, Ethiopia and Cape Verde to modernize infrastructure and provide critical services.

Sept. 18th, 2023, 10:30 am ET: It’s been an inspiring and purposeful start to High Level Week at the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly here in New York City.  

Microsoft has a physical project in the SDG pavilion visualizing the progress made on six Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for the last twenty years by SDG regions and countries. Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab and UNIO partnered with the UN, ETH Zürich and Project Everyone to analyze and visualize UN data globally.

The visualization is on a Surface Hub in the entrance to the Pavilion. The six goals visualized include: Goal 1 Poverty and development, Goal 2 Nutrition and food systems, Goal 3 Health and wellbeing, Goal 4 Youth and education, Goal 5 Gender equality and Goal 15 Climate and nature.

Creating brighter futures for the world’s children and young people was a focus on Sunday, during a weekend of action to accelerate progress on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.  

As part of #SDGActionWeekend, the UN children’s charity UNICEF delivered an update on the Learning Passport, an initiative launched with Microsoft’s support to ensure displaced children and young people can continue their education.    

Posting from #UNGA78, Justin Spelhaug, Microsoft’s VP of Tech for Social Impact, Microsoft Philanthropies shared these stats, showing how millions of students are benefiting from the Learning Passport program, including these children in Nigeria. 

On Monday, #UNGA78 will focus on the potential of AI to advance the Sustainable Development Goals.  

Progress on meeting many of the global goals the UN has set is way behind schedule, and we are now halfway to the deadline of 2030 for achieving them. 

Microsoft is strongly committed to supporting the United Nations in achieving the SDG’s and we believe AI and technology can significantly accelerate progress.  

Microsoft launched our SDG Report in the lead up to high level week, with a call for renewed multi stakeholder action and a recognition that the use of responsible AI has the potential to help to tackle the deep-rooted global challenges that the SDGs seek to solve.  

As a committed supporter of the United Nations, we’ll be here in New York City throughout High Level Week of #UNGA78. Keep checking back here for updates as world leaders deliver their vision for a more sustainable and inclusive future.  

Sept. 17, 2023, 11:30 am ET: Welcome to UNGA 78 – or to use the official title – the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

There’s a lot going on here on the banks of the East River in New York City where the General Assembly of the UN is headquartered. And we’ll be keeping you up to date all week long. 

Why is Microsoft at UNGA 78? 

Microsoft has long been committed to supporting the UN’s mission on environmental, humanitarian, development and security issues. In January 2020, we established an office in New York City, which works to deepen partnerships with the UN and explore how technology can help overcome some of the world’s greatest challenges.  

A progress report on the Sustainable Development Goals 

Microsoft is committed to supporting the achievement of all of the SDGs, with a particular focus on four of the goals where we believe technology can have a major impact:   

• Goal 4 - Quality Education.  

• Goal 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth 

• Goal 13 - Climate Action  

• Goal 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions 

You can read more about the ways Microsoft supports the SDGs in our SDG report here.

We’ll have a lively drumbeat of updates from UNGA 78 on issues including responsible AI, creating inclusive and sustainable growth and ways we can all work together to protect democracy and our fundamental rights.  

Keep checking back here for all the latest news from Microsoft. Also, follow the United Nations LinkedIn page for their updates.