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The 2026 International AI Safety Report: Advancements and New Risks

On February 3, 2026, the International AI Safety Report has been released, presenting a comprehensive, scientifically grounded assessment of general AI capabilities, emerging risks, and the current status of risk management and safety precautions. This report, chaired by the Turing Award winner, Yoshua Bengio, brings together more than 100 experts from around the globe and is further supported by an advisory board with nominees from over 30 countries and international organizations such as the EU, the OECD, and the UN.

Key Findings

Improvement in General AI Capabilities

The report shows that the abilities of general AI have drastically improved, especially in mathematics, programming, and autonomous operations. Notably, in 2025, leading AI systems secured gold medals in the International Mathematics Olympiad and outperformed PhD experts in various scientific benchmarks. Interestingly, these systems have also demonstrated the capability to autonomously accomplish some software engineering tasks that would typically take a human programmer several hours. However, the report notes that performance remains inconsistent, as these systems still struggle with seemingly simple tasks.

Rapid but Uneven AI Adoption

The integration of AI technology has occurred at a remarkable pace globally, outstripping the introduction of earlier technologies like personal computers. Currently, around 700 million people utilize leading AI systems weekly, with amalgamated rates varying significantly across regions. In some countries, over half the population engages with AI, while in parts of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, adoption rates are estimated to be under 10%.

Escalation of Deepfake Incidents

Concerns concerning deepfakes are rapidly increasing. AI-generated deepfakes are increasingly leveraged for fraud and scams, along with non-consensual generative imagery that disproportionately affects women and girls. A study highlighted that 19 out of 20 popular