The European Union has pressed the newly appointed co-chairs of the Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence on the scope of its upcoming report, its independence safeguards, and how it will capture AI impacts in developing countries. In a statement delivered on 19 June 2026 at the UN General Assembly interactive dialogue, EU delegate Daphné Barbotte posed a series of detailed questions on behalf of the bloc and its member states, signalling the EU's intent to shape the panel's work as it prepares its first report due in July 2026.
The EU welcomed the panel's establishment in March 2026 and expressed support for its independent scientific mandate. However, the statement raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest, given that many panel members have affiliations with major tech companies, AI labs, or national research institutes. The EU asked what mechanisms the panel uses to manage such conflicts and how it ensures transparency in informal consultations with external experts. It also queried how genuine scientific disagreements among members are adjudicated and reflected in the report.
On the report's substance, the EU noted that the panel's mandate is to synthesise existing research, not produce original work, and asked which gaps in the evidence base are most consequential. It specifically urged the panel not to focus exclusively on large language models and artificial general intelligence, but to also examine non-language-based models, embodied AI, and industrial AI. The EU proposed that the panel produce thematic briefs between annual reports on topics including recent AI developments, AI and the environment, human rights due diligence, education, labour markets, children, cybersecurity, malicious use by non-state actors, and AI's positive contribution to development.
Addressing the AI divide, the EU asked how the panel captures evidence from developing countries where data is scarcer, and whether it has examined regional variations in AI deployment and effects across different socio-economic groups. It also questioned how the panel ensures that views and research agendas from less-resourced institutions are taken into account.
Looking ahead, the EU highlighted that the panel's report will inform the Global Dialogue on AI Governance scheduled for early July 2026, and asked how the panel envisages its interaction with that forum. The statement also inquired about interim communication to stakeholders beyond the annual report presentation.
The EU's intervention reflects its broader push for a human-centric, rights-based approach to AI governance grounded in multilateralism. The panel's report is expected to provide a scientific basis for global AI governance discussions, with the EU seeking to ensure it addresses both risks and opportunities across diverse regions and sectors.