The Global Alliance for AI Ethics (GAAIE), an international initiative hosted by Qatar Foundation member Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), was officially launched on July 12, 2026, in Geneva, Switzerland. The announcement coincided with the first United Nations Global Dialogue on AI Governance, held under the auspices of the United Nations Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies.
GAAIE aims to reshape global discussions on artificial intelligence ethics by promoting a more inclusive and diverse framework. The initiative seeks to move beyond a predominantly Western-centric discourse, which critics have argued limits non-Western perspectives to secondary roles, by elevating the ethical traditions and values of the Global South. Its approach emphasizes a polycentric governance model designed to embed human dignity and socio-cultural well-being into the development and deployment of AI technologies.
The alliance’s launch featured a high-level strategic roundtable entitled “Epistemic Equity in the Digital Age: Forging a Polycentric Global AI Discourse through North-South Collaboration.” This event brought together GAAIE’s newly appointed Advisory Board and senior UN-nominated experts. The participants began crafting a long-term Collaboration Roadmap intended to broaden and diversify the global AI ethics conversation with input from various international institutions.
Qatar’s commitment to the initiative was highlighted in an official statement delivered to the UN Dialogue plenary by HE Mohammed bin Ali al-Mannai, Minister of Communications and Information Technology and head of Qatar’s delegation. Dr. Ahmad M Hasnah, president of HBKU, emphasized the university’s vision, saying technological progress should be guided by strong human-centric values. He described the alliance’s goal as fostering a global framework where ethics drives responsible and sustainable AI innovation—not only advancing technological capability but ensuring benefits for humanity at large.
The Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations Office in Geneva, HE Dr. Hind Abdulrahman al-Muftah, described the Geneva launch as a significant milestone for Qatar’s leadership in values-driven technology governance. She pointed to the event as a crucial step toward translating ethical AI principles into actionable, internationally recognized frameworks.
Dr. Mohammed Ghaly, GAAIE co-chair and director of the Research Center for Islamic Legislation and Ethics, underscored the initiative’s mission to counterbalance the Western dominance of AI ethics discourse. He highlighted the alliance’s intention to provide culturally authentic data to mitigate existing biases and establish fairer, more equitable global governance models.
Key components of the alliance’s work include the Global AI Ethics Observatory, tasked with independent auditing and ethical evaluation of AI systems, and the Global Heritage AI Project, which focuses on digitizing underrepresented cultural archives and supporting low-resource languages, including Arabic.
As GAAIE broadens its operations, it is inviting academic institutions, civil society organizations, and policymakers worldwide to participate in its collaborative network. By combining empirical research with normative advocacy, the alliance aims to set new standards for pluralistic and inclusive AI governance on the global stage.