UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres highlighted what he sees as the damaging impacts of new and evolving technology and AI at the High-level meeting of the General Assembly on the 30th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women.

“Artificial intelligence is reshaping our world, but the transformation is unfolding in an industry dominated by men, shaped by biased data, and driven by algorithms that frequently reinforce discrimination,” Guterres said.

UN General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock highlighted the issue of women’s representation. “And out of all 80 presidents of the General Assembly, I’m only the fifth woman,” Baerbock said. She noted that in 80 years of United Nations history, there has never been a female secretary-general.

“This is not just a matter of representation, it’s a matter of credibility to practice what we preach,” Baerbock added.

The meeting marked the 30th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing, which adopted a Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action that aimed to achieve the equal rights of all women and girls. Agreed by 189 governments the platform for action centres on 12 areas of action, including jobs and the economy, political participation, peace, the environment, ending violence against women.

“Let us remain true to our original aspirations and mission,” said Huang Xiaowei, Deputy Head of the National Working Committee on Children and Women of the State Council of China, the country that hosted the event.

UN-Women Executive Director Sima Bahous concluded her statement by saying, “let history remember 2025 as the year we stood our ground for ceasefires, for peace, for justice, for equal rights, for sustainable development and for prosperity for all women, for all girls, for all humanity.”