WHO renews Science Council as AI, gene editing and emerging technologies reshape global health

The World Health Organization has renewed its Science Council, bringing together 21 scientists and experts from around the world as the global health body prepares for a period of rapid change driven by artificial intelligence, biotechnology, gene editing and other emerging technologies.

The newly constituted council includes specialists from a wide range of fields, including public health, epidemiology, biomedical research, health systems, ageing, engineering, precision medicine and advanced technologies.

With members representing all six WHO regions and two seats reserved for young representatives, the organisation says the new council is designed to bring a broad mix of scientific expertise and perspectives to some of the biggest health challenges and opportunities of the coming decades.

WHO looks ahead to the next wave of scientific change

Scientific progress is moving at a speed that could dramatically alter how diseases are prevented, diagnosed and treated.

Artificial intelligence is already beginning to reshape medical research and healthcare delivery, while developments in biotechnology, robotics, synthetic biology and gene editing are opening possibilities that were once considered distant.

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the organisation is strengthening its ability to identify major scientific developments early and examine how they could affect global health.

“The pace of scientific discovery is accelerating at an extraordinary rate,” Tedros said, pointing to advances ranging from AI and biotechnology to gene editing and robotics.

The challenge for global health authorities is not simply to follow these developments, but to determine how they can be safely and effectively translated into better health outcomes for populations around the world.

What will the WHO Science Council do?

The Science Council serves as WHO's main external advisory body on major scientific issues, breakthrough innovations and emerging technologies with the potential to transform global health.

Its role includes providing independent scientific advice on high-priority developments and helping WHO anticipate future risks and opportunities.

That forward-looking approach is becoming increasingly important as new technologies emerge faster than governments and international institutions can always develop policies to regulate or adopt them.

The council is expected to help WHO identify scientific trends that could have a major impact on healthcare systems and populations, while offering strategic advice on how the organisation should respond.

The aim is to ensure that promising advances do not remain confined to laboratories or wealthier countries but can eventually contribute to improved health outcomes on a wider scale.

AI, biotechnology and precision medicine are changing healthcare

The renewed council arrives at a time when technology is becoming increasingly central to medicine.

AI tools are being developed to assist with disease detection, medical imaging, drug discovery and healthcare administration. At the same time, precision medicine is creating new opportunities to tailor prevention and treatment to individual patients.

Gene editing and synthetic biology could also reshape the response to inherited diseases, infectious threats and other major health challenges.

But rapid scientific progress can also create difficult questions involving safety, ethics, access and inequality.

WHO's renewed Science Council is expected to help the organisation examine those issues while advising on technologies that could significantly influence the future of global health.

Youth members join scientists and health experts

One of the notable features of the renewed council is the inclusion of two youth representatives.

The young members were identified through the WHO Youth Council and will bring younger perspectives into discussions about scientific and technological developments that could shape health systems for decades.

WHO said the membership reflects an effort to balance scientific excellence with geographic representation, gender diversity and generational inclusion.

The approach recognises that decisions about emerging technologies will affect not only today's healthcare systems but also younger generations who will live with their long-term consequences.

A wider effort to strengthen WHO's scientific capacity

The Science Council and WHO's Science Division were created as part of a broader transformation initiative aimed at strengthening the organisation's ability to provide independent and evidence-based advice to its member states.

Together, the two bodies are intended to help WHO respond more effectively to a scientific landscape that is becoming increasingly complex.

New discoveries can create major public health opportunities, but they can also introduce new risks that require early attention.

By bringing together experts from different disciplines and regions, WHO hopes to improve its ability to assess these developments before they become major policy challenges.

Why the renewed council could matter for the future of global health

The next major breakthrough in healthcare may come from a laboratory, an AI system, a biotechnology company or a combination of several emerging technologies.

For WHO, the challenge will be deciding which developments could transform health outcomes and how those benefits can be made accessible beyond a small number of countries or healthcare systems.

The renewed 21-member Science Council is expected to play an important role in that process.

As AI, gene editing, robotics and other technologies continue to advance, WHO is positioning itself to look beyond immediate health emergencies and prepare for the scientific changes that could define global healthcare in the years ahead.

The renewed council's work will ultimately focus on a central question facing the global health community: how to turn accelerating scientific progress into safer, more equitable and more effective healthcare for people everywhere.