At the United Nations General Assembly this week, diplomats and technologists gathered in an unusual convergence to confront a challenge that transcends traditional borders: the governance of artificial intelligence, and in particular the risk of systems that may one day operate beyond human control. The meeting reflects a broader awakening among nations to the reality that AI development, unfolding across continents and institutions simultaneously, cannot be managed by any single country alone. What is being attempted here is something humanity has rarely done well — building the rules before