ITU launches AI agent trust initiative

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a United Nations agency for digital technologies, announced on July 9, 2026, at the AI for Good Summit in Geneva a new initiative to improve trust in artificial intelligence agents. The ITU established a Focus Group on Trust and Identity for Humans and Agentic AI to develop frameworks ensuring AI agents remain identifiable, trustworthy, and subject to meaningful human control, particularly in sensitive areas like financial transactions and critical infrastructure. The group, comprising technical, policy, and legal experts, will hold its first meeting in Paris in November and its second in Geneva in January. Co-chairs Debora Comparin and Amir Banifatemi emphasized the need for international standards to establish agent identity and trustworthiness. ITU Secretary General Doreen Bogdan-Martin noted the initiative is part of a broader theme at the summit.