Facing the stakes of AI together: from shared concerns to joint action.
We invite our global community to join virtually via an interactive livestream.
Register now to reserve your spot and get updates.
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Date:
Thursday | December 4, 2025
Time:
9:00am - 6:00pm CET (followed by a reception for in-person participants)
Location:
In-person: 61 Whitehall, London, United Kingdom (invitation-only)
Online: Zoom Event (open to the public)
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As AI systems grow more powerful, politicized, and deeply embedded in global institutions, the urgency for meaningful governance has never been greater. The Athens Roundtable was created for moments like this. As a focused, informal, credible, and action-oriented forum, it provides space to take on the most pressing governance issues: honestly, directly, and without performative consensus.
This year we invite participants to confront the hardest questions head-on: the technical forecast, the policy landscape, and the (geo)political sensitivities. In other words, we invite participants to address “the elephants in the room” that too often go unasked or unanswered in global AI governance: How do we define and prevent unacceptable AI risks such as those that could lead to societal harm and destabilization? What institutional safeguards are needed to detect and respond to AI incidents? How can we bridge between geopolitical and sectoral divides to build lasting, inclusive frameworks for AI accountability? How do we protect our children and younger generations in the age of AI ?
The theme of The Athens Roundtable 2025 is about facing the stakes of AI together: from shared concerns to joint action. This is the moment to act collectively with clarity, urgency, and imagination.
Our high-level goals are to:
I) Stress-test the current status of global AI governance. We’ll cut through the noise to examine AI’s technical forecast, policy landscape, and geopolitical sensitivities. As AI systems evolve and the global landscape shifts, many existing AI governance efforts, from voluntary principles to regulatory frameworks, now face real tests of relevance and durability. We’ll take a critical look at what’s working, what isn’t, and what might be needed next.
II) Explore new avenues for international coordination. At a time when trust in institutions is eroding and multilateralism is under strain, we will foster candid dialogue across geographic, ideological and sectoral lines to identify areas where cooperation is in everyone’s interest. Through dedicated closed-door dialogue sessions, we’ll discuss concrete ways to work together on two urgent priorities:
Unacceptable AI risks: Build shared understanding of unacceptable risks posed by AI systems and explore viable diplomatic pathways toward international or multilateral agreement, oversight, and verification.
Serious incident prevention and preparedness: Identify the institutional capabilities needed to track, monitor, and respond to serious AI incidents; and strengthen international coordination on prevention and preparedness frameworks before AI incidents escalate.
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Read this edition’s concept note here.
A detailed agenda will follow.
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The seventh edition, held under the auspices of H.E. the President of the Hellenic Republic Mr. Constantine An. Tassoulas, is organized by:
In partnership with:
the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
With support from:
