Exploring the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Human Rights Monitoring: Key Takeaways from the AI for Good Workshop

22 July 2025

On 8 July 2025, the opening day of the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, the Geneva Human Rights Platform (GHRP) and the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Human Rights Hub co-hosted the workshop 'AI for Human Rights: Smarter, Faster, Fairer Monitoring'. The event brought together human rights practitioners, data scientists, and AI experts to explore how artificial intelligence can support — and challenge — efforts to monitor human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

With attendance nearly doubling the room’s seating capacity, the level of engagement confirmed the critical importance of this topic for actors across disciplines.

'There is a real need to create spaces like this, where the human rights and tech communities come together to learn from one another,' said Felix Kirchmeier, Executive Director of the Geneva Human Rights Platform. 'This dialogue is essential if we want technology to truly serve the values we stand for.'

Bridging Human Rights and AI Expertise

The workshop’s dual aim was to facilitate mutual understanding between human rights and AI communities and to assess how AI can responsibly support rights-based work. To this end, the event combined expert panel discussions with practical group exercises and demonstrations.

A high-level panel featuring representatives from OHCHR, UNDP, HURIDOCS, and the AI Accountability Lab explored both opportunities and concerns related to AI deployment. The interactive segments were equally central: participants engaged with AI-enhanced simulations based on the OHCHR’s National Recommendations Tracking Database (NRTD), experimented with generative AI applications for human rights monitoring, and benefited from direct exchange with AI practitioners, including experts from ETH Zurich and its Center for Security Studies (CSS), who facilitated discussions.

'The real challenge lies in ensuring that AI is used in ways that genuinely strengthen human rights work, rather than complicate or undermine it,' explained Domenico Zipoli, Project Coordinator at the Geneva Human Rights Platform and co-organizer of the event. 'This workshop aimed to foreground that ethical lens, while also offering hands-on insights into how AI is already being applied by human rights actors.'

Grounded Insights from a Diverse Audience

Polling during the session revealed strong interest and thoughtful contributions from a broad range of sectors — including representatives from the diplomatic community, academia, international organizations, and civil society. While most participants reported basic to intermediate AI literacy, over half had advanced expertise in human rights and development, enriching the dialogue around both opportunities and risks.

Key concerns included data protection, algorithmic bias, and the lack of transparency and ethical safeguards in existing AI tools. Participants also stressed the need for stronger guidance frameworks, better data, and capacity-building to ensure meaningful and safe AI use in rights contexts.

'What stood out was the level of humility and curiosity across both communities,' noted Milica Mirkovic, Research Consultant at the Geneva Human Rights Platform. 'There was no tech solutionism here, just a commitment to explore together how we can do better, smarter, and more responsibly.'

Human Oversight and Collective Responsibility

The practical activities reinforced a central message: AI can be a useful tool, but only if human oversight, ethical reflection, and inclusive design remain at the core. From tracking human rights recommendations to building early-stage prototypes, the workshop demonstrated that human rights monitoring cannot be outsourced to machines.

As echoed throughout the session, integrating AI into this space is not just about innovation, it's about ensuring that any such innovation remains grounded in justice, accountability, and community ownership.

A Platform for Continued Dialogue

This workshop forms part of GHRP’s ongoing commitment to fostering interdisciplinary collaboration on digital human rights tracking tools and databases, as captured in our growing Directory and expert roundtables. It also builds on a series of preparatory online exchanges with OHCHR, HURIDOCS, ETH Zurich, and the University of Poznań, aimed at cultivating a shared vocabulary and joint reflections between the human rights and AI communities.

As a next step, the conversation will continue at the Latsis Symposium 2025 at ETH Zurich, where the GHRP and partners will co-host a dedicated panel and technical workshop on AI and Human Rights: Promises and Pitfalls. The GHRP also plans to launch a training course on AI for human rights professionals later this year, building on the insights from the workshop and offering targeted capacity-building for those working at the intersection of rights and technology.

A full reflection on the July workshop will also be featured in an upcoming AI for Good blog post, co-authored by the Geneva Human Rights Platform and its partners — capturing the lessons learned and key takeaways from this unique interdisciplinary dialogue.

'This gave me a new perspective, not just on what AI can do, but what it should do,' noted one participant — a reminder of the importance of collective reflection in shaping ethical, rights-based AI systems.