AI shift threatens to create a new global divide, UN Warns
Shafaq News – Geneva
The United Nations warned on Tuesday that artificial intelligence (AI) could widen the gap between developed and developing countries unless governments adopt coordinated policies to manage its impact.
The new report, The Next Great Divergence, released by the UN Development Programme’s Asia and Pacific regional bureau, says AI may reverse decades of declining global inequality and trigger a “new era of rising inequality” between states.
Philip Schellekens, the bureau’s chief economist, told reporters in Geneva that recent decades of convergence between rich and poor countries could be undone as AI spreads unevenly, adding that countries lacking strong digital infrastructure, reliable electricity, and skilled workforces risk falling further behind.
The report draws a parallel between the AI transition and the Industrial Revolution, noting that the technology could unlock new economic opportunities or deepen existing divides across a world already marked by sharp differences in wealth and digital access. It adds that rising inequality could generate broader spillover effects, including pressure on migration and security.
Although focused on Asia and the Pacific — home to more than half of the world’s population and more than 50 percent of global AI users — the report’s authors say the study’s conclusions apply globally. According to the findings, AI is already improving services in remote education, disease detection, small-business financing, and disaster response across parts of the region. It could also raise annual GDP growth by roughly two percentage points, with ASEAN economies projected to gain nearly $1 trillion in additional output over the next decade.
However, the report notes that early gains are concentrated in advanced economies such as Singapore, Japan, and China, while countries with weaker infrastructure or limited technological capacity are missing out. Jobs held by women and young people face particular exposure to automation without targeted policy measures.
“No one can predict with certainty where AI will take us,” the report says, pointing out that decisions about how to use and regulate the technology should remain centered on people rather than machines.
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