World Bank Urges Developing Nations to Embrace AI
At a Glance
- World Bank issues AI warning.
- AI seen as growth opportunity.
- Developing nations urged to invest.
- Risks of inequality also highlighted.
The World Bank has urged developing countries to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), warning that those failing to embrace the technology risk falling further behind economically while missing opportunities to improve public services and productivity.
Key Statements and Focus Area
- World Bank Chief Economist Indermit Gill says AI offers developing economies "a lifeline."
- The report urges countries to prioritize practical, low-cost AI applications over building large AI models.
- AI could improve healthcare, education, agriculture, and public services.
- The World Bank also warns of growing inequality, job displacement, and privacy risks if AI is poorly managed.
The World Bank appealed as it released its annual World Development Report, saying artificial intelligence presents a major opportunity for developing economies to strengthen growth and improve governance.
Chief Economist Indermit Gill said developing countries do not need to build large AI models or expensive data centers to benefit from the technology.
"AI has thrown developing economies a lifeline, and they should seize it," Gill said.
The report recommends that governments adapt lower-cost AI tools to local needs, particularly in healthcare, education, agriculture, and the justice system.
It also calls on countries to invest in electricity infrastructure, computing capacity, and locally relevant data to support AI deployment.
According to the report, AI could help deliver essential public services to underserved populations much faster than traditional approaches.
The World Bank said developing economies are experiencing their weakest average growth in three decades after a series of global economic shocks.
It added that AI has the potential to strengthen economic growth before the end of the decade if governments adopt the technology effectively.
The report cites examples including AI-assisted diabetes screening in Bangladesh and advanced weather forecasting tools that help reduce costs for farmers in India.
The report also warns that AI could increase inequality between countries, concentrate economic power, undermine trust in public institutions, and create new challenges related to privacy, safety, and human rights.
While the short-term impact on employment in developing countries is expected to be limited, the World Bank cautioned that AI could eventually replace many middle-income jobs that support economic mobility.
Officials stressed that governments must establish safeguards to ensure AI systems remain transparent, fair, and trusted by the public.
FYI
According to the World Bank, 6.8 billion people, around 83% of the global population, live in low-income and developing countries, where access to digital infrastructure remains uneven. Most advanced AI models are currently developed in the United States and China and require massive computing power, specialized data centers, and significant electricity and water resources.
Rather than competing in building frontier AI models, the World Bank recommends that developing countries focus on adapting existing technologies to local needs. The report also notes that AI itself was used in preparing parts of the 2026 World Development Report, including tools developed by OpenAI, DeepSeek, Google, and Anthropic.
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