As artificial intelligence (AI) advances and its global impacts deepen, strategic cooperation among states and other actors becomes increasingly important. This report examines what functions such cooperation could serve and how those functions are currently implemented in other domains.
The report identifies three objectives that strategic cooperation on AI could advance — improving understanding of AI capabilities and risks, promoting reliable AI development while managing proliferation, and preparing to mitigate and respond to harms — and four core functions likely to be relevant across a range of possible futures: research, standard-setting, monitoring, and verification.
To ground this analysis, the report examines how 17 existing international organizations implement these functions, drawing out patterns and implementation insights. Three key findings emerge: Functions are rarely performed in isolation; the same function can be implemented in substantially different ways depending on context; and even well-designed functions face implementation challenges that organizations address through mechanisms ranging from capacity-building to reputational pressure.
The functions identified are not tied to any particular institutional form; they can be implemented through formal international organizations, multilateral or bilateral arrangements, ad hoc coalitions, or public-private mechanisms. This report is intended for policymakers, AI researchers, and other stakeholders working to advance effective strategic cooperation on AI.
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