South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called on BRICS member states to establish an international mechanism for the independent scientific evaluation of artificial intelligence during an address at the BRICS Leaders' Summit in New Delhi on Sunday.
Speaking during an open session focused on shaping inclusive global growth, Ramaphosa warned that technological capabilities must not advance beyond humanity's capacity to understand, supervise, and control them. While acknowledging that advanced artificial intelligence could usher in a new era of economic productivity, transform healthcare, expand scientific discovery, and assist in poverty reduction, he emphasized that governance models must evolve at the same rapid pace as model development.
Warnings Over System Risks and Industry Oversight
The South African leader urged governments to closely monitor warnings issued by researchers and executive leaders within the technology sector regarding the societal and operational hazards of frontier systems. Ramaphosa specifically highlighted risks associated with autonomous model actions, complex cyber intrusions, mass surveillance capabilities, potential assistance in biological weapons design, workforce disruptions, and the emergence of models whose reasoning processes prove difficult for human oversight to manage.
In his address, Ramaphosa explicitly endorsed recent proposals by Anthropic Chief Executive Officer Dario Amodei advocating for formal external checks, mandatory third-party audits, and regulatory government authority over artificial intelligence laboratories. He noted that stringent regulatory oversight remains standard practice in sectors with major public safety implications, such as commercial aviation, pharmaceutical manufacturing, nuclear energy, and global financial institutions.
Proposals for International Frameworks and Sovereign AI
To ensure effective multilateral oversight, Ramaphosa proposed that the BRICS bloc form an independent scientific evaluation framework grounded in meaningful human control principles. Under the proposed structure, member nations would enforce mandatory reporting requirements for serious technical incidents and implement progressively stronger safety barriers as system capabilities scale.
Ramaphosa also emphasized the necessity of simultaneous investments in sovereign artificial intelligence infrastructure across developing economies to ensure equitable access to frontier technologies throughout the Global South. Concluding his remarks on technology policy, the South African president voiced support for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s initiative to construct an integrated artificial intelligence ecosystem across BRICS member states.
