The European Union, in a statement delivered on 24 June 2026 at the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, endorsed a report by the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls that highlights both the potential and the risks of artificial intelligence for women's rights, and called for gender-responsive and human rights-based AI governance. The statement, issued by the EU Delegation to the UN in Geneva, stressed the need for an ambitious approach to address root causes of gender inequality, including technology-facilitated gender-based violence and gender bias embedded in algorithms, and urged accountability for human rights violations.
The EU underlined its own regulatory efforts, noting that it has been at the forefront of developing ethical and gender-responsive systems, introducing algorithmic accountability, criminalising serious forms of cyber violence, and establishing a human rights-based approach to ensure AI is ethical, trustworthy, and secure by design. The statement also posed a question to the Working Group on what measures states and companies should take to ensure data protection and privacy for women and girls, particularly those in vulnerable situations, in light of concerns about AI-facilitated surveillance.
The statement did not announce new EU legislation or funding, but reaffirmed existing EU policy positions and regulatory frameworks. The intervention carries no binding commitments and serves as a diplomatic expression of support for the Working Group's findings. Stakeholder impact is limited: EU tech companies already subject to the AI Act and Digital Services Act may face continued scrutiny on algorithmic bias, while women's rights advocates gain rhetorical backing for stronger data protection measures. No immediate institutional follow-up was specified beyond the interactive dialogue.