On the occasion of the United Nations General Assembly, to be held from 22 to 28 September 2026 in New York (USA), more than 125 organisations and experts are reiterating their joint statement on children’s rights and artificial intelligence. They had already drawn attention to these issues at the Global Dialogue on AI Governance in July 2026 in Geneva (Switzerland), emphasising that children’s rights in relation to the digital environment must also be applied in the context of artificial intelligence as set out by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child in 2021 in its General Comment No. 25 on the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
In this context, the organisations emphasise that children’s rights must be at the heart of the governance of artificial intelligence and cannot be taken into account as an afterthought. In particular, children and young people must be protected from infringements of their privacy, negatively impacting their health and wellbeing, misinformation, discrimination, and adverse effects on their education, safety and dignity.
To address this, artificial intelligence applications must prove that they respect and protect children’s rights before they are given access to the market. Governments should ensure that AI tools do not exploit children or their rights, and hold providers to account should such incidents occur. Adherence to high standards, closing protection loopholes, providing child-friendly information and explanations regarding artificial intelligence applications, and establishing redress mechanisms should all contribute to this.
The joint statement can be read here. In addition to Stiftung Digitale Chancen, supporting organisations include the 5Rights Foundation, Amnesty International, COFACES Family Europe, ECPAT International and Save the Children.