The Aryavarth Express Chennai (Tamil Nadu), February 24: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Madras) Professor B. Ravindran has been appointed to the United Nations’ Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence, a newly constituted global body tasked with providing rigorous and independent scientific assessment of AI’s impact on society.
The panel was established through a UN General Assembly Resolution adopted on August 26, 2025, and is the first global scientific body dedicated to Artificial Intelligence. It brings together 40 leading experts from diverse regions and disciplines to evaluate how AI is transforming economies, governance, and daily life worldwide.
The initiative follows the Global Digital Compact adopted at the 2024 Summit of the Future, which called for the creation of a global scientific mechanism to ensure that international AI discussions are guided by credible evidence and multidisciplinary expertise.
Addressing the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi last week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced that the panel was being formally appointed. He said the body would help replace “hype and fear with shared evidence” and provide independent scientific insight at a time when AI development is accelerating rapidly. He also highlighted the launch of a broader global dialogue on AI governance within the United Nations framework.
Prof. Ravindran is the Founding Head of the Centre for Responsible AI (CeRAI) at IIT Madras and currently heads the Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI. With over three decades of experience in the field, his research spans responsible AI and deep reinforcement learning.
Congratulating him, IIT Madras Director Prof. V. Kamakoti said the institute was proud of Prof. Ravindran’s inclusion in the panel, noting that the body would play a significant role in ensuring AI has a positive global impact.
Expressing gratitude for the appointment, Prof. Ravindran said AI is a generational technology influencing lives across the world, often in unseen ways. He added that he was honoured to represent India and serve as a voice for the Global South in examining the far-reaching societal, economic, and ethical implications of AI.
The Independent International Scientific Panel on AI aims to strengthen global scientific cooperation, generate evidence-based insights on AI deployment, and support international governance efforts through multidisciplinary expertise.
Prof. Ravindran’s appointment underscores IIT Madras’ growing role in advancing responsible AI research and contributing to global policy discussions on emerging technologies.
