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Las Vegas, Nevada, 7 August, 2026 — Ai4 2026, America’s largest and most influential artificial intelligence conference, concluded yesterday after welcoming more than 12,000 attendees from 100 countries to The Venetian Conference and Expo Center for three days of groundbreaking discussions, world-class education, and unparalleled networking focused on the future of artificial intelligence.

The ninth annual conference marked a year of extraordinary growth, reflecting the accelerating adoption of AI across every industry. Attendance increased by more than 50 percent over 2025, growing from 8,000 to more than 12,000 participants. The event also expanded its international reach, welcoming attendees from 100 countries, while the exhibition grew to include more than 400 exhibitors and sponsors, up from 250 the previous year. The number of startup companies exhibiting nearly tripled, increasing from 25 to 66, underscoring the rapid pace of AI innovation and investment worldwide.

“This year’s growth demonstrates that artificial intelligence has moved beyond experimentation to become a strategic priority for organizations across every sector,” said Michael Weiss, Co-Founder of Ai4. “From Fortune 500 executives and pioneering researchers to entrepreneurs, policymakers, and investors, Ai4 continues to bring together the global AI ecosystem to share ideas, forge partnerships, and accelerate responsible innovation.”

The conference featured more than 1,000 speakers across 80 dedicated education tracks, providing attendees with in-depth insights into every aspect of artificial intelligence—from foundation models, agentic AI, robotics, cybersecurity, healthcare, manufacturing, finance, and enterprise transformation to AI governance, infrastructure, and responsible deployment. Educational programming included keynote presentations, executive roundtables, technical deep dives, workshops, fireside chats, and industry-specific sessions designed to help organizations move from AI experimentation to successful implementation at scale.

Among the week’s most anticipated moments was “The Architects of Intelligence: A Historic Convergence,” featuring Nobel Prize recipient and widely recognized “Godfather of AI” Geoffrey Hinton, pioneering AI researcher Fei-Fei Li, and Andrew Ng, founder of DeepLearning.AI. Moderated by Yun-Hee Kim, Deputy Editor of The Washington Post, the standing-room-only discussion explored the scientific breakthroughs, ethical considerations, and opportunities that will shape the future of artificial intelligence.

Additional keynote presentations featured many of the world’s leading AI researchers and enterprise technology executives, including Pat Gelsinger, Sachin Katti, Jeetu Patel, Sebastian Thrun, Dmitri Dolgov, Srini Venkatesan, Anastasis Germanidis, and Inhi Cho Suh, along with hundreds of industry experts representing the companies, institutions, and organizations driving AI innovation around the globe.

The expanded exhibition showcased more than 470 exhibitors and sponsors, including many of the world’s leading technology companies, such as AMD, AWS, Cisco, NVIDIA, Google Cloud, SAP, Siemens, HPE, Dell Technologies, EY, IBM, Mistral AI, Dataiku, Vultr, Red Hat, and PayPal. Attendees experienced the latest advances in enterprise AI, cloud infrastructure, data platforms, developer tools, autonomous systems, robotics, and generative AI through live demonstrations and interactive exhibits.

One of the fastest-growing areas of the conference was Startup Alley, where 66 emerging AI companies showcased innovative technologies to enterprise buyers, investors, and strategic partners. The exhibit hall also featured the popular Agentic Live demonstrations, the Podcast Pavilion, international pavilions, executive networking lounges, and numerous hands-on experiences that enabled attendees to engage directly with the technologies transforming business and society.

Ai4 2026 also attracted a record 225 credentialed journalists from leading business, technology, broadcast, and international media organizations – more than doubling the previous year’s attendance – reflecting the conference’s growing influence as one of the world’s premier destinations for breaking AI news and thought leadership.

“The pace of innovation in artificial intelligence continues to accelerate, and Ai4 has become the place where the industry’s most important conversations take place,” said Marcus Jecklin, Co-Founder of Ai4. “Whether attendees came to learn from the world’s leading researchers, discover breakthrough technologies, meet emerging startups, or build strategic partnerships, the energy and collaboration throughout the week demonstrated the extraordinary momentum driving AI worldwide.”

With record participation across every major category – including attendance, exhibitors, speakers, educational programming, startups, media, and international representation – Ai4 2026 further strengthened its position as the industry’s premier event for organizations seeking to understand, implement, and scale artificial intelligence.

Planning is already underway for the next edition of Ai4, which will take place August 3-5, 2027 at the Venetian Conference & Expo Center in Las Vegas. As the conference continues its mission of bringing together the global AI community to explore the technologies, ideas, and partnerships shaping the future of artificial intelligence.

Founded in 2018, Ai4 has become the premier destination for leaders seeking to understand and apply artificial intelligence responsibly and effectively. By convening the brightest minds in AI research, strategy, and implementation, Ai4 continues to advance innovation while helping organizations confidently navigate the AI-powered future. For more information, visit https://ai4.io/.

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Photos & Video for Media Use

High-resolution photos and broadcast-quality b-roll from Day One are available here:

•       Photos: Link to Photos and b-roll footage from Ai4 2026

•       B-Roll: Link to B-roll Footage from each day of Ai4 2026

•       Press Releases: Link to exhibitor and speaker press releases from Ai4 2026

•       Press Resources: Link to logos, photos, video, news releases, etc.

Please credit Ai4 when using event photography or video.

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Amy Riemer, Media Relations

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Note: AI4 2026 opens today at The Venetian in Las Vegas with more than 12,000 attendees from 85 countries expected at America’s largest Artificial Intelligence Conference featuring Geoffrey Hinton, Fei-Fei Li, and Andrew Ng. Following is a press release from the conference.

Las Vegas, Nevada, 4 August, 2026 — Now in its eighth year, Ai4 2026 has become the premier global gathering for organizations seeking to understand, implement and scale artificial intelligence across every major industry. With more than 1,000 speakers, nearly 400 exhibitors and sponsors, and hundreds of educational sessions, the conference offers unparalleled opportunities to discover emerging technologies, hear from the world’s leading AI pioneers, and build strategic partnerships. The trade show and conference is running through Thursday, August 6th at the Venetian, Las Vegas.

The conference opens Tuesday, August 4, at 8:30 am with a series of keynote presentations exploring the technologies and business strategies driving the next wave of AI innovation. Highlights include:

•               AI’s Race to Reinvent Medicine features Alex Zhavoronkov, Founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine, and Eric Nguyen, CEO of Radical Numerics, moderated by Alice Park, Senior Health Correspondent at TIME.

•               The One Decision That Separates AI Winners from AI Casualties, featuring Mark Abramowitz, Chief Marketing Officer at Dataiku, and Jed Dougherty, SVP of AI & Platform at Dataiku.

•               The AI Reckoning: Chips, Constraints and the Next Generation of Compute, bringing together technology visionary Pat Gelsinger, former Intel CEO and General Partner at Playground Global, with Sachin Katti, Head of Compute at OpenAI. The discussion will be moderated by Gideon Lewis-Kraus, technology writer for The New Yorker.

•               Mistral: Pioneering Transparent and Transformative Frontier AI, featuring Pavan Kumar Reddy, one of Mistral’s first U.S.-based AI scientists.

On Wednesday, August 5, one of the conference’s most anticipated moments will be “The Architects of Intelligence: A Historic Convergence,” bringing together three of the most influential figures in modern AI for a rare conversation on the future of artificial intelligence. The session features:

•               Geoffrey Hinton, Nobel Prize recipient and widely recognized as the “Godfather of AI”

•               Fei-Fei Li, pioneering researcher and leader in human-centered AI

•               Andrew Ng, Founder of DeepLearning.AI and one of the world’s leading AI educators

Moderated by Yun-Hee Kim, Deputy Editor of The Washington Post, the discussion will examine the scientific breakthroughs shaping AI, the challenges that lie ahead, and the opportunities and responsibilities that accompany the technology’s rapid evolution. The Wednesday keynote program also includes presentations from Srini Venkatesan, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at PayPal, and Kevin Cochrane, Chief Marketing Officer at Vultr.

Beyond the keynote stage, attendees will have access to more than 1,000 expert speakers presenting across dozens of industry-focused tracks covering healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, retail, cybersecurity, government, life sciences, energy, education, marketing, transportation and more. Sessions will explore the latest developments in generative AI, AI agents, foundation models, enterprise deployment, responsible AI, governance, robotics and emerging research.

Additional conference highlights include:

•               Nearly 400 Exhibitors and Sponsors: Discover the latest AI technologies, platforms and solutions from the industry’s leading technology providers, startups and innovators.

•               Technical and Business Summits: Dedicated programming for both technical practitioners and business leaders, featuring hands-on learning and real-world implementation strategies.

•               AI Policy Summit: Bringing together policymakers, industry leaders and researchers to discuss the future of AI governance and regulation.

•               Agentic Live: Live demonstrations showcasing next-generation autonomous AI agents solving real-world business challenges.

•               Startup Alley: Featuring emerging AI startups presenting breakthrough technologies to investors, customers and enterprise decision-makers.

•               Podcast Pavilion: Live interviews and conversations with leading AI experts, executives and innovators throughout the conference.

•               Networking Events: Daily receptions, executive roundtables, industry meetups, the Women in AI Reception and the official Ai4 Afterparty provide countless opportunities to connect with peers from around the world.

Founded in 2018 by Michael Weiss and Marcus Jecklin, Ai4 has become the world’s leading enterprise AI conference, bringing together the global artificial intelligence community to accelerate innovation, foster collaboration and explore the responsible development and deployment of AI technologies. Through world-class programming, industry-leading speakers and unmatched networking opportunities, Ai4 continues to serve as the epicenter of the rapidly expanding global AI ecosystem.

For additional information, visit www.ai4.io.

# # #

For Further Information, Contact

Amy Riemer, Media Relations

978-502-4895 (cell)

amy@riemercommunications.com

Media Registration: Reporters, analysts, and content creators covering artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are invited to apply for press credentials at https://ai4.io/press-resources/

For access to all news from Ai4 click here.

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Note: WFP News Release

Kabul, Afghanistan, 4 August 2026 – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is sounding the alarm over a deepening child malnutrition crisis in Afghanistan, warning that funding shortfalls are forcing life-saving food and nutrition programmes to be scaled back at the very moment they are needed most. Without urgent support, WFP and its partners will be unable to prevent more children from becoming dangerously malnourished, putting lives at risk in the coming months.

WFP’s warning follows the release of an alert that highlights that malnutrition is at critical levels in a third of Afghanistan’s provinces – a record number – and projected to continue to rise through October. Critical levels of child acute malnutrition indicate an urgent need for lifesaving treatment; 12 provinces are currently in this phase—Helmand, Daykundi, Zabul, Baghlan, Urozgan, Paktika, Nuristan, Sar-e-Pul, Ghor, Kandahar, Faryab, and Logar.

Child malnutrition typically peaks in Afghanistan between July and October, driven by a surge in communicable diseases, poor water and sanitation, reduced access to essential nutrition services and increasing levels of food insecurity. However, this year, many children did not have enough to eat even during periods of peak food availability: child food insecurity rose to afflict 47 percent of the population in the first quarter. Malnutrition among Afghan children is rarely isolated and it dramatically increases the risk of child death.

“Feeble cries of malnourished babies haunt the health clinics of Afghanistan as worried mothers—many themselves weakened by hunger—bring their children, desperate for treatment,” said WFP Country Director in Afghanistan John Aylieff. “We are witnessing the next generation waste away in spite of this being harvest time – a time of plenty.  This is not simply heartbreaking—it is unacceptable.”

Colliding crises—including conflict, unemployment, elevated food prices and reduced humanitarian funding—have driven this alarming rise in malnutrition. In 2025, 142 health centres across the country closed and more than 13,000 children were cut from nutrition treatment due to reductions in humanitarian assistance. This year, remaining nutrition programmes were crippled by a severe shortage of nutrition products driven by conflict in the Middle East and the closure of the Pakistan border for nine months. These conflicts blocked supply routes and drove up costs. As a result, nearly one million malnourished mothers and children in Afghanistan missed out on essential nutrition services for five months.

In Afghanistan nearly 3.7 million children are projected to suffer from acute malnutrition, while 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding women are also expected to be malnourished – without immediate investment, these figures are set to rise.

“Afghanistan is already gripped by one of the world’s most severe and unrelenting malnutrition crises, and these staggering numbers could climb even higher. This crisis could eclipse all previous projections and condemn countless more children and mothers to preventable death,” added Aylieff.

Scaling up nutrition treatment and prevention services is critical to stop this crisis from escalating further. However, there is no funding available for prevention services which remain the most effective, cost-efficient and sustainable way to stop the crisis from deepening. WFP urgently requires USD 540 million over the next six months.

Note to the editor

Link to the nutrition alert here

Hi-res photos here

Broadcast quality footage here

#                     #                        #

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters, and the impact of climate change.

Follow us on X, formerly Twitter, via @WFP_Afghanistan

For more information please contact:

Ziauddin Safi, WFP/Kabul, Mob. +93 70 693 4875

Geeta Bandi-Phillips, WFP/Bangkok, + 66 63 197 7831

Julian Miglierini, WFP/ Rome, Mob. +39 348 2316793
Martin Rentsch, WFP/Berlin, Mob +49 160 99 26 17 30

Rene McGuffin, WFP/ Washington Mob. +1 771 245 4268

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Shanghai, China, 17 July 2026 – The United Nations and China shared the view that progress made in developing artificial intelligence technology should benefit all of humanity and not just a handful of countries and companies.

“Artificial intelligence can be one of humanity’s greatest opportunities in the 21st century,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in an address to the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai. “It could also become one of its greatest risks. As your Conference theme reminds us, a brighter future depends on partnership.”

“The launch by President Xi of the AI Capacity-Building Action Plan For Good And For All is a very strong message of Chinese commitment, and the World AI Cooperation Organization (WAICO) can be instrumental in that regard,” Guterres said. “Partnership is also at the centre of the Global Digital Compact adopted by the UN General Assembly – with the full support of China.”

The UN chief said Compact made it clear: “Technology that will shape the future of humanity must be shaped by all of humanity. It cannot be governed by a handful of countries or companies. Every nation needs a seat at the table. That table has now been built through the Global Dialogue on AI Governance – as called for in the Compact.”

Representatives from dozens of countries attended the four-day conference in Shanghai. They agreed to establish WAICO before the meeting opened.

President Xi Jinping said in opening the conference, “In China’s view, all countries should take a people-centered approach and develop AI for the positive and for good. We should ensure that AI is an important driver for shared prosperity and common security. We should join hands to build a just and equitable system for global AI governance.”

Xi said his demand for people-centered AI rests on four observations: countries should adhere to the principle of openness and win-win and boost innovation-driven development; strengthen risk-awareness and ensure that “AI is secure and controllable, AI should be a trusted tool for humanity;”
encourage inclusiveness and promote mutual learning between civilizations, and advocate solidarity and improve global governance.

Xi said China, as a “responsible major country,” has proposed the Global AI Governance Initiative and promoted the adoption of the U.N. General Assembly Resolution on Enhancing International Cooperation on Capacity-Building of Artificial Intelligence by consensus. He said the creation of WAICO demonstrated that his country has been contributing steadily to the global AI governance.

In order to further support global AI development and advance global AI capacity building, President Xi said that in the next five years, China will provide developing countries with 5,000 opportunities in AI training and seminar programs; develop international AI application cooperation centers with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the League of Arab States, the African Union, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and BRICS; and enable 30 countries to use the AI-powered meteorological warning system, or MAZU, to safeguard homes around the world.

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Note: AI leaders such as Geoffrey Hinton, Fei-Fei Li, Andrew Ng, Sebastian Thrun, Pat Gelsinger, Tim O’Reilly, among more than 1,000 AI leaders, will headline North America’s largest artificial intelligence event for an unprecedented gathering of innovation, research, and enterprise transformation.

Las Vegas, Nevada, 16 July, 2026 — As artificial intelligence reshapes every industry and redefines the future of business, the world’s leading AI researchers, entrepreneurs, executives, policymakers, and innovators will gather at Ai4 2026, taking place August 4–6 at The Venetian Las Vegas, for America’s largest AI conference.

Now in its eighth year, Ai4 will welcome more than 12,000 attendees from over 85 countries, feature more than 1,000 speakers, and showcase nearly 400 exhibitors and sponsors, creating the industry’s largest forum for exploring how artificial intelligence is transforming business, government, healthcare, manufacturing, finance, education, and society. Throughout the three-day conference, attendees can choose from more than 1,000 sessions exploring every major facet of AI innovation.

“Artificial intelligence has reached a pivotal moment,” said Michael Weiss, Co-Founder of Ai4. “Organizations are moving beyond experimentation and deploying AI at enterprise scale. Ai4 brings together the researchers creating the next generation of AI, the executives implementing it across global organizations, and the entrepreneurs building the technologies that will define the next decade.”

The conference opens Tuesday, August 4, at 8:30 am with a series of keynote presentations exploring the technologies and business strategies driving the next wave of AI innovation. Highlights include:

•               AI’s Race to Reinvent Medicine features Alex Zhavoronkov, Founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine, and Eric Nguyen, CEO of Radical Numerics, moderated by Alice Park, Senior Health Correspondent at TIME.

•               The One Decision That Separates AI Winners from AI Casualties, featuring Mark Abramowitz, Chief Marketing Officer at Dataiku, and Jed Dougherty, SVP of AI & Platform at Dataiku.

•               The AI Reckoning: Chips, Constraints and the Next Generation of Compute, bringing together technology visionary Pat Gelsinger, former Intel CEO and General Partner at Playground Global, with Sachin Katti, Head of Compute at OpenAI. The discussion will be moderated by Gideon Lewis-Kraus, technology writer for The New Yorker.

•               Mistral: Pioneering Transparent and Transformative Frontier AI, featuring Pavan Kumar Reddy, one of Mistral’s first U.S.-based AI scientists.

On Wednesday, August 5, one of the conference’s most anticipated moments will be “The Architects of Intelligence: A Historic Convergence,” bringing together three of the most influential figures in modern AI for a rare conversation on the future of artificial intelligence. The session features:

•               Geoffrey Hinton, Nobel Prize recipient and widely recognized as the “Godfather of AI”

•               Fei-Fei Li, pioneering researcher and leader in human-centered AI

•               Andrew Ng, Founder of DeepLearning.AI and one of the world’s leading AI educators

Moderated by Yun-Hee Kim, Deputy Editor of The Washington Post, the discussion will examine the scientific breakthroughs shaping AI, the challenges that lie ahead, and the opportunities and responsibilities that accompany the technology’s rapid evolution. The Wednesday keynote program also includes presentations from Srini Venkatesan, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at PayPal, and Kevin Cochrane, Chief Marketing Officer at Vultr.

Thursday’s keynote program explores how AI is moving beyond digital applications into the physical world while addressing the infrastructure required to support the next generation of intelligent systems.

Featured sessions include:

•               AI That Understands the Real World, featuring Anastasis Germanidis, Co-Founder and CEO of Runway; Inhi Cho Suh, CEO of Niantic Spatial; and Oliver Cameron, CEO of Odyssey. Moderated by Jared Perlo, AI Reporter for NBC News, the session explores how AI is evolving from generating digital content to mapping, understanding, and acting in real-world environments.

•               The Waymo Journey: From Moonshot to Global Deployment, where autonomous vehicle pioneer Sebastian Thrun, founder of Waymo and Udacity, joins Dmitri Dolgov, Co-CEO of Waymo, for a discussion moderated by Tim O’Reilly, Founder and CEO of O’Reilly Media.

•               Critical Infrastructure for the AI Era: Scaling and Securing Agentic AI, featuring Jeetu Patel, President and Chief Product Officer at Cisco, in conversation with Matt Egan, Senior Reporter at CNN, exploring the infrastructure demands created by the transition from AI assistants to autonomous AI agents.

The conference concludes Thursday afternoon with additional keynote presentations, including:

•               Building an AI-Native Company at Global Scale, presented by Praveen Neppalli Naga, Chief Technology Officer at Uber.

•               Building Ethical AI, presented by Chloe Bakalar, AI Ethics Lead at OpenAI.

Beyond the keynote stage, Ai4 2026 brings together one of the most comprehensive collections of AI leaders ever assembled. Executives from organizations including Cisco, PayPal, Dataiku, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, IBM, NVIDIA, SAP, Siemens, Dell Technologies, Red Hat, and EY will share practical strategies for deploying AI across customer experience, cybersecurity, software development, manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, and enterprise operations.

The exhibition hall will feature nearly 400 leading AI companies and emerging startups demonstrating the latest breakthroughs in enterprise software, robotics, infrastructure, developer tools, data platforms, cloud computing, and generative AI applications. New features for 2026 include Startup Alley, Agentic Live demonstrations, an expanded International Pavilion, the Podcast Pavilion, executive networking lounges, and interactive technology showcases.

“Since launching Ai4 in 2018, we’ve watched artificial intelligence evolve from an emerging technology into one of the defining forces shaping business and society,” said Marcus Jecklin, Co-Founder of Ai4. “This year’s speaker lineup reflects that transformation by bringing together the scientists advancing the field, the executives deploying AI at a global scale, and the entrepreneurs building the next generation of intelligent technologies.”

With thousands of executives, investors, researchers, developers, founders, policymakers, and enterprise decision-makers expected to attend, Ai4 2026 continues to serve as the premier destination for discovering breakthrough technologies, building strategic partnerships, and defining the future of artificial intelligence. For the complete agenda, speaker lineup, and registration information, visit the Ai4 website. Register before August 2 and Save $600.

Founded in 2018, Ai4 has become the premier destination for leaders seeking to understand and apply artificial intelligence responsibly and effectively. By convening the brightest minds in AI research, strategy, and implementation, Ai4 continues to advance innovation while helping organizations confidently navigate the AI-powered future.

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For further information, contact:

Amy Riemer, Communications Director

978-502-4895 (mobile)

amy@riemercommunications.com

Media Registration: Reporters, analysts, and content creators covering artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are invited to apply for press credentials at https://ai4.io/press-resources/

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Immediate humanitarian needs are immense, while greater investment in protection, livelihoods, and opportunities is critical to successful reintegration and long-term stability.

Kabul, Afghanistan, 8 July 2026 — UN Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Alexander De Croo and UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Barham Salih today called on the international community to provide urgent, sustained investment in Afghanistan as one of the world’s largest return movements places immense pressure on communities grappling with acute poverty, climate shocks and limited economic opportunities.

Since 2023, more than 6 million Afghans have returned to the country, including around 2.9 million in 2025. More than 750,000 people have already returned so far this year, with a further 2.5 million expected by the end of 2026.

Both leaders urged international partners not to turn away from Afghanistan, warning that aid cuts and declining international attention risk deepening poverty, fuelling further displacement and undermining fragile gains.

The call came at the conclusion of a joint mission to Afghanistan, during which the two UN leaders met with the de facto authorities and visited UN-supported activities in Mazar-e-Sharif, where they saw first-hand both the immense pressures facing communities and the impact that sustained international support can make. The mission underscored the UN’s joint commitment to meeting urgent humanitarian and protection needs while helping lay the foundations for longer-term recovery, stability and durable reintegration.

“While the needs across Afghanistan remain enormous, we have a critical window of opportunity to support communities to forge a path beyond crisis,” said Alexander De Croo, UNDP Administrator. “For people who are now returning, this is not the end of a journey; it is the beginning of one. People need jobs. They need access to basic services. They need the opportunity to rebuild their lives. These investments are already working, and the international community can expand this critical support. So people returning home become catalysts for recovery and lasting security.”

The visit highlighted the impact of existing UN-supported programmes, including protection services, legal identity support, livelihoods, psychosocial assistance, basic community services and access to finance that helps small businesses grow and create jobs, particularly for women and young people.

The two UN chiefs also underscored new joint efforts to expand access to legal identity documentation, which is essential for accessing services, economic opportunities and long-term reintegration. After years outside the country, fewer than half of returning Afghans possess documentation linking them to Afghanistan.

Through their complementary mandates, UNHCR and UNDP support returnees from reception and protection at the border through reintegration, livelihoods, social cohesion and economic recovery in the communities where they settle.

“Nearly half the population requires humanitarian aid, and with millions more Afghans expected to return, local communities are under great pressure. People need our support now,” said Barham Salih. “But meeting immediate needs is only part of the answer. Afghanistan’s long-term recovery depends on all Afghans having the opportunity to contribute to their country’s future. Protection, opportunity and dignity must go hand in hand, particularly for women and girls. UNHCR will continue working with Afghanistan and its neighbours to promote conditions for returns that are safe, voluntary and dignified.”

In meetings with senior officials of the de facto authorities, the two UN chiefs called for the full participation of women in Afghanistan’s social and economic life and for women and girls to enjoy their fundamental rights. They stressed that women and girls are indispensable to household resilience, community stability and the country’s long-term recovery. They also underscored the imperative that female humanitarian workers be able to reach and assist women and girls, including female returnees, as part of the response.

Afghanistan remains one of the world’s most fragile economies. Heavily dependent on agriculture, the country is acutely exposed to the impacts of climate change. Recent returnees are among the most vulnerable, with 92 per cent unable to meet their basic needs. In provinces receiving large numbers of returnees, only 3 per cent have formal employment, while 78 per cent rely on casual labour.

Many returnees arrive with significant protection needs and limited resources. Ensuring access to legal identity documentation, essential services, livelihoods and community support will be critical to helping returnees rebuild their lives with dignity and contribute to Afghanistan’s long-term recovery.

Media contacts

For UNDP in New York City, USA, please contact Dylan Lowthian dylan.lowthian@undp.org +1 646 673 6350

For UNHCRin Kabul, Charlie Goodlake: goodlake@unhcr.org, +44 7810 260093

For UNHCR in Geneva, Matthew Saltmarsh: saltmars@unhcr.org, +41 79 967 99 36

About UNDP – UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and plan.

About UNHCR

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for people forced to flee their homes because of conflict and persecution.

We lead international action to protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people.

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With fewer than five years to 2030, a decisive final push is needed to keep the promise of
the SDGs within reach
New York, 7 July 2026 — Since their adoption in 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) have delivered results at scale – bringing access to water, electricity and health
care to billions. However, progress remains uneven and insufficient. Without a decisive
push to rapidly scale up what works, the promise of the SDGs risks slipping out of reach,
according to The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2026, released today.

What a decade of evidence tells us: the SDGs deliver results

Since 2015, sustained investment, sound policies and international cooperation have
improved the lives of billions of people worldwide with measurable gains across the SDGs.
Nearly one billion people gained access to safely managed drinking water and 1.2 billion to
safely managed sanitation. New HIV infections fell by 30 per cent between 2015 and 2024,
and AIDS-related deaths by 35 per cent. Electricity now reaches 92 per cent of the world’s
population. Internet access has surged, from 40 to 74 per cent. Social protection covers
more than half the global population for the first time in history.

Behind these results is an important and often overlooked achievement: the data
revolution. A decade ago, data was available for only half of all SDG indicators. Today, a
global database of more than 3.2 million data points covers nearly every indicator —
enabling countries to identify where progress is accelerating, where gaps persist and which policies are delivering results.“

Guided by the data in this report, our vision of the 2030 Agenda remains within reach.
“Together, let us make a decisive final push to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals
and build a healthy, prosperous future for all,” said United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.

Why the world is falling short: overlapping crises and a widening financing gap
Despite progress, however, major challenges persist. Of the 139 SDG targets with trend
data, only 36 per cent are on track or making moderate progress. Nearly half — 49 per cent
— are advancing too slowly, and 15 per cent have regressed below 2015 baselines.

One in ten people still live in extreme poverty. Around 2.3 billion people face moderate or
severe food insecurity. More than 150 million children remain stunted. Maternal mortality
stands at nearly three times the global target. None of the gender equality targets are on
track. The number of people affected by climate-related disasters has more than doubled
since 2015. Escalating conflicts, climate change, slowing economic growth, rising debt
and a record decline in official development assistance are compounding the shortfall and
disproportionately affecting the world’s most vulnerable people.

What must happen now: scale up what works
The report emphasizes that the SDGs remain the world’s shared blueprint for peace,
prosperity and sustainability. The evidence accumulated over more than a decade of
implementation shows that meaningful progress is achievable — but only when political
commitment, financing, innovation and international cooperation align.

“More than a decade of implementation has shown what is possible,” said Li Junhua,
United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. “The task now is
to scale up what works — with the urgency, investment and cooperation needed to fulfill
the promise of the 2030 Agenda.”

Closing the approximately $4 trillion annual SDG financing gap — through the Sevilla
Commitment and the reform of the international financial architecture — is essential. This
must be matched by stronger data systems through the Medellín Framework to direct
investment to the most vulnerable first. Accelerating the energy transition, harnessing
frontier technologies including artificial intelligence for sustainable development,
advancing gender equality as a cross-cutting priority, and reinforcing multilateral
cooperation will also be critical to success.

The choices made over the next four years — on financing, cooperation and collective
crisis response — will have lasting effects for generations to come, according to the report. Additional key facts and figures.

Progress

• Most regions will be close to eradicating extreme poverty by 2030, except sub-
  Saharan Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, and Oceania (excluding Australia
  and New Zealand).
• Between 2012 and 2024, stunting prevalence among children under five declined,
  resulting in 30.2 million fewer stunted children worldwide.
• The share of births attended by skilled health personnel rose from 80 to 87 per cent
  between 2015 and 2025 and is on track to reach the 90 per cent target by 2030.
• Between 2019 and 2025, 99 legal reforms were enacted to remove discriminatory
  laws and establish gender equality frameworks; women now hold 27.4 per cent of
  parliamentary seats, up from 22.3 per cent in 2015.
• Child labour fell by more than 20 million between 2020 and 2024.
• Global unemployment stood at a near-historic low of 4.9 per cent in 2025.
• Renewable electricity generating capacity per capita grew at a record 14 per cent
  between 2023 and 2024 and is now 2.2 times its 2015 level.
  Challenges
• The global extreme poverty rate is projected to reach only 10 per cent by 2026 — just
  3 percentage points below its 2015 level, far short of the target to end extreme poverty.
• 273 million children and young people remain out of school; one in five young
  people aged 15–24 is not in employment, education or training, and young people
  are nearly four times more likely to be unemployed than adults.
• An estimated 1.16 billion people — roughly one in four urban residents — live in
  slums or informal settlements.
• Official development assistance fell by a record 23.1 per cent in 2025 — the largest
  annual decline ever recorded — returning to roughly 2015 levels.
• The global refugee population reached 440 per 100,000 people by mid-2025, more
  than double the level of a decade earlier.
• Extinction risk is worsening across all species groups; protection of key biodiversity
  areas averaged only 45 per cent in 2025.
• Violent conflict has surged to its highest level in decades. As of December 2025,
  more than 117.8 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide, erasing years of
  development gains in months.
• Global temperatures in 2025 reached 1.43°C above pre-industrial levels and
  atmospheric carbon dioxide hit its highest concentration in two million years.
• The external debt of low- and middle-income countries reached a record $8.9 trillion
  in 2024.

For more information, please visit: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2026
Hashtags: #SDGreport #SDGs #GlobalGoals
Media contacts:
Sharon Birch, UN Department of Global Communications, birchs@un.org
Helen Rosengren, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

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AI safety, accountability and human oversight among topics to be discussed – Press Release

Geneva, Switzerland, 6 July 2026 – The United Nations today kicked off a global dialogue bringing together governments, tech companies, academia, civil society and the technical community to facilitate discussions on artificial intelligence governance.

“AI is advancing at runaway speed. The question is whether we will govern it together – or let it govern us. For the first time, the AI Dialogue gives every country a seat at the table. We must now turn global participation into global action – to make AI safer, fairer, more accessible and more ethical,” said UN Secretary-General, António Guterres.

The inaugural session of the Global Dialogue on AI Governance (AI Dialogue) seeks to ensure that governance reflects the priorities of all nations, not just the most technologically advanced, and that the benefits of AI are shared by all.

Discussions will address various themes including the opportunities and implications of this technology; how to bridge the AI divide; international cooperation on AI governance; and robust human oversight of AI systems, consistent with international law, to ensure safety and security.

“This Global Dialogue is not merely about regulating a technology. It is about defining a shared vision in which technological progress goes hand in hand with human dignity, equity, and sustainable development,”said Annalena Baerbock, President of the UN General Assembly. “If governed responsibly and collectively, AI has the potential to accelerate progress across nearly every Sustainable Development Goal, offering powerful new tools in healthcare, education, scientific research, disaster preparedness, and agriculture.

“It is about demonstrating to the people of the world that the United Nations is not lost in the past or too slow to act; that it is, in fact, able and willing to move on the most pressing and emerging issues of our time.”

Why this platform, why now

AI is already being governed — through national regulations, technical standards, procurement frameworks, and bilateral agreements — but unevenly. Governance frameworks have been shaped predominantly by countries with advanced AI sectors, while the countries most exposed to AI’s consequences have had the least say in how those frameworks are designed.

The AI Dialogue corrects that imbalance. Mandated by the UN General Assembly, it gives every government an equal seat. Developing countries and the Global South participate with full standing to shape outcomes — not as observers.

>> Follow the Global Dialogue on 6 July and 7 July remotely <<

“The credibility of this first Global Dialogue has been built through an open and participatory process that continues here in Geneva. Our collective success will be defined by every voice, perspective, experience, and contribution that is shaping the path forward for AI”, said Egriselda López, Permanent Representative of El Salvador to the UN and Co-Chair of the Dialogue.

Fellow Co-Chair and Permanent Representative of Estonia to the UN, Rein Tammsaar, said that “leveraging the convening power of the UN, we must start transforming artificial intelligence into a global public good that benefits all of humanity while ensuring safety by design and meaningful human oversight. For this to happen, the first Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva should spark AI’s San Francisco moment.”

>>See the full programme and list of featured attendees here.<<

Six months of global consultations

Since January 2026, structured global consultations have taken place across thematic, regional, and virtual formats, drawing in governments, civil society, the private sector, academia, and the technical community. More than 1,500 written submissions were submitted from organisations and individuals across all regional groups.

The result of the written submissions revealed different priorities among the groups: For example, governments were the only stakeholder group to place capacity-building first. Most other groups ranked safety first. Other themes that ranked high in priority include transparency, accountability and human oversight, as well as social, economic, ethical, cultural and linguistic implications. One area of consensus from the consultations is that participants want to see continuity in this process: more than five hundred submissions called for the process to continue beyond July.

The Dialogue takes place one week after the Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence launched its preliminary report handing the governments who convene there a shared evidence base to build policy from. The Panel, composed of independent scientists and experts from every region, outlines trends in AI and warns that current safeguards cannot keep pace with the growth of AI’s capabilities.

The Panel comprises 40 members serving in their personal capacity, independent of any government, company, or institution, including the United Nations. Members were selected from more than 2,600 candidates through an open call and independent review process. The Panel is co-chaired by Yoshua Bengio (Canada) and Maria Ressa (Philippines).

Quotes

Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General, ITU: “For AI to benefit all people, technology and international cooperation must move forward together. The Global Dialogue on AI Governance has sharpened the world’s focus on building an AI future that includes everyone, especially the 2.2 billion people who have yet to join the digital world.”

Khaled El-Enany, Director-General, UNESCO:

“Humanity’s rich and diverse cultural and linguistic heritage is our greatest source of creativity, identity and resilience, but we must ensure Artificial Intelligence strengthens, rather than erodes this diversity. Global AI governance is essential to protect all voices, empower all cultures, and guarantee that innovation reflects the full breadth of human culture.”

Amandeep Singh Gill, Under-Secretary-General and Special Envoy for Digital and Emerging Technologies: “The Global Digital Compact gave the multilateral system two things it never had before: an independent scientific panel to assess AI’s impacts and opportunities, and a global dialogue where every government has a seat at the table. Today, for the first time, both come together. That is what makes 6 July a turning point — not just for AI governance, but for how the international community responds to transformative technology.”

About the Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance

The Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance is the first platform under a United Nations General Assembly mandate where Member States and all relevant stakeholders convene on AI governance. Established by resolution A/RES/79/325, it meets recurrently to exchange best practices, share national and regional experiences, and build common approaches to the governance of artificial intelligence.

The AI Dialogue forms part of a comprehensive Digital Week in Geneva, a European UN hub, back-to-back with the annual AI for Good Global Summit and WSIS Forum.

About the joint secretariat

The joint secretariat of the Global Dialogue comprises the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Office of the Digital Economy and Technology (ODET), and the Executive Office of the Secretary-General (EOSG). ITU and UNESCO coordinate the secretariat for the first session.

About ITU

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the United Nations agency for digital technologies, driving innovation for people and the planet with 194 Member States and a membership of over 1,000 companies, universities, civil society, and international and regional organizations. Established in 1865, ITU coordinates the global use of the radio spectrum and satellite orbits, establishes international technology standards, drives universal connectivity and digital services, and is helping to make sure everyone benefits from sustainable digital transformation, including the most remote communities. From artificial intelligence (AI) to quantum, from satellites and submarine cables to advanced mobile and wireless broadband networks, ITU is committed to connecting the world and beyond. Learn more: www.itu.int​

About UNESCO

UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, is a specialized agency dedicated to strengthening international cooperation in the fields of education, science, culture, and information. It sets standards, produces tools and develops knowledge to create solutions to some of the greatest challenges of our time, and foster a world of greater equality and peace. Protecting biodiversity, responding to artificial intelligence, advancing quality education, safeguarding heritage, and ensuring access to reliable information are some examples of the work that UNESCO does with its 194 Member States across the globe.

About ODET

The United Nations Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies (ODET) serves as the UN system-wide focal point for advancing inclusive, rights-based digital cooperation. Functioning as a “Connector, Catalyst, and Convener,” the office coordinates efforts on AI governance, facilitates multistakeholder policy dialogue, advises senior leadership on technology, and supports the implementation of the Global Digital Compact. For more details, visit UN ODET.

Media contacts

ITU: [David Hirsch, pressinfo@itu.int] UNESCO: [Maria Sanchez Aponte, email — m.sanchez-aponte@unesco.org] ODET: [Karoline Hassfurter, karoline.hassfurter@un.org]

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Note: The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) highlights in a press release that half-way through 2026, just 30 per cent of required aid funding has been delivered. It warns that if the world does not choose to change course, we will see a massive loss of lives.

Oslo, 1 July 2026 – Half-way through 2026, humanitarian funding for some of the world’s most neglected displacement crises remains at rock bottom. As the reality of funding cuts begins to show, millions of people are being completely abandoned by the world, warns the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). 

“2026 is a make-or-break year for millions in desperate need around the world from Venezuela to Sudan. Families whose lives have been shattered by conflict are increasingly struggling to survive. Violence and displacement continue unabated, while spiralling inflation puts basic goods out of reach all at a time when aid is declining due to a lack of funding. If the world doesn’t choose to change course, we will see a massive loss of lives,” said Jan Egeland, NRC’s secretary general.  

Six months into the year only 30 per cent of the funding needed to support 143 million people out of the 252 million people in need of aid globally has been received. 

“Global generosity for victims of conflict and disasters is abysmal. Without a dramatic increase of support, countless communities in need of aid will have little chance of being helped this year. We urgently need to see countries able to fund space missions and World Cups step up to support people living through crisis,” said Egeland. 

“Families I have spoken to in Sudan, Iran, Gaza and Ukraine this year all told me they felt forgotten by the world. But it is not too late to change this.” 

The drop off in funding from countries in North America, Europe and other affluent nations is hurting certain regions especially hard. Some of the world’s most chronically neglected crises are seeing desperately low levels of funding.    

“Countries must allocate funding based on the level of need, not their own geopolitical and nationalistic interests. They must not simply focus on those featured on the frontpages. We commend the effort of Sweden who continue to give based on the objective assessment of needs, and hope others will follow suit,” said Egeland. 

Afghans, that for many years saw a robust humanitarian response and a huge and expensive Western military operation, is now one of the peoples with the least funding. This shift is in part due to the ending of all US humanitarian support to the country, despite the US having contributed more than 40 per cent of all aid to Afghanistan up to 2024. This drop in funding comes at a time when 21.9 million people require aid, and millions are returning from neighbouring countries. Just 11 per cent of adults who have returned to Afghanistan are fully employed.  

“This year for the first time Afghanistan features on NRC’s list of the world’s most neglected crises. Now we are seeing funding for Afghanistan hit record low levels with just one in every six dollars needed for aid currently available. Families tell us the drop in aid has left them without a lifeline and without access to even basic services. Donors must heed the warnings before millions more fall into hunger and desperation,” said Egeland. 

“Our lives have got worse from the last two years. My husband used to work from time-to-time and humanitarian organisations also used to come in this area to assist us. Now, we don’t see much of that assistance, and my husband is unemployed and most days is unable to get work,” said Momina, a 45-year-old mother of six from Nangarhar province in Afghanistan. 

Countries in the Central Sahel dominate the list of lowest funded humanitarian responses with Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali making up three of the five least funded plans in 2026. Millions face displacement, worsening protection conditions, and the loss of basic services. Alongside the dire levels of humanitarian funding, the region has also seen a sharp decline in development financing that has weakened already fragile systems and left schools and health facilities struggling to function.  

“For too long, the Central Sahel has faced chronic underfunding and neglect. Humanitarian funding is essential, but without longer-term investment the conditions that leave people increasingly vulnerable, such as lack of services, limited opportunities, and rising displacement, will only deepen. Investing now is key to reducing future crises and unlocking the region’s potential. It is both a necessity and an opportunity for millions of people,” said Egeland.  

“We must ensure parents can give hope and opportunities to their children that ends the cycle of neglect. 2026 must not go down in the record books as the year the world turned its back.” 

Notes to editors: 

• In 2026, a total of 252 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. A total of 33.66 billion US dollars has been requested to support 143.2 million of them (OCHA). As of 24 June, 10.23 billion US dollars have been delivered – 30.4 per cent of what is needed (OCHA). The amount requested is the lowest since 2019. 
• Of the targeted 143.2 million, 88.7 million are urgently prioritised (OCHA). 24 billion US dollars is required to reach this group of which 9.83 have been delivered – 40.1 per cent (OCHA). 
• The United States has provided 4,873 million US dollars in humanitarian funding so far this year. This is just over a third of what they gave in 2024 (14,061 million US dollars) (OCHA). 
• In 2024 the United Kingdom gave 2,263 million US dollars, compared to 645.8 million half-way through 2026 (OCHA). 
• The lowest funded humanitarian responses so far in 2026 are: Yemen, Niger, Burkina Faso, Afghanistan and Mali (OCHA). 
• In 2026, Afghanistan’s humanitarian needs and response plan is 16.9 per cent funded (OCHA). 
• According to IOM’s Returnee Resilience Survey among undocumented returnee households and single travellers who had spent time resettling after return 11 per cent of adults were fully employed (IOM). 
• 21.9 million people are in need of aid in Afghanistan in 2026. Of them 17.5 million have been targeted for humanitarian assistance (OCHA). 
• In 2026, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger’s humanitarian needs and response plans stand at 15.6, 18.4 and 15 per cent funded respectably (OCHA). 
• All funding data is correct as of 24 June 2026. 
• NRC’s neglected displacement crisis report for 2025 is available here. 

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:   

Norwegian Refugee Council’s global media hotline: media@nrc.no, 
+47 905 623 29   

Jessica Wanless Media Specialist Adviser, Global Public Communications Section, Oslo. +47 901 67 022 / media@nrc.no 

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