UNDP: AI Risks Widening Global Inequality Unless Access Is Democratized

A United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report released in Bangkok warns that artificial intelligence could deepen existing global and within-country inequalities unless policymakers act to broaden access to skills, power and digital infrastructure.

Why AI could deepen divides

The report likens the current moment to the 19th-century "Great Divergence," when rapid industrialization in some countries left many others trailing. As a general-purpose technology, AI can boost productivity, create new industries and help latecomers catch up — but the gains are likely to concentrate in places with strong digital ecosystems, reliable electricity and skilled workforces.

"We need to ensure it’s not technology first, but it’s people first," said Michael Muthukrishna of the London School of Economics, the report's lead author, in a video statement at the launch in Bangkok.

Practical benefits and real risks

AI offers clear, practical benefits: tailored farm advisory services, automated X-ray analysis and faster medical diagnoses, improved weather forecasting and more rapid disaster damage assessments. These advances could be especially valuable for rural communities and disaster-prone regions.

However, the report warns of significant risks of exclusion. Millions live in places with limited internet access, unstable electricity, and few opportunities for skills training — conditions that make them both hard to reach and often "invisible" in the datasets that inform AI systems. About a quarter of the Asia-Pacific region still lacks online access, the report notes.

Environmental, ethical and security concerns

Even wealthy countries face challenges. Rapid expansion of data centers can consume large shares of electricity and water, potentially slowing efforts to cut carbon emissions and creating public health strains. Ethical and security issues include the misuse of AI in cyberattacks, the spread of deepfakes, threats to privacy through surveillance, and opaque "black box" systems that can perpetuate bias.

The report highlights stark regional differences: countries such as China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore are well positioned to capitalize on AI, while Afghanistan, the Maldives and Myanmar lack many of the basic resources needed to benefit. Within-country disparities mean that some communities in advanced economies could be left behind as well.

Policy recommendations

UNDP economists urge governments to treat AI as essential infrastructure alongside electricity, roads and the internet. Recommended priorities include investing in digital infrastructure, expanding education and training, ensuring fair competition, strengthening regulation and building social protections to protect those most at risk of disruption.

Philip Schellekens, the UNDP's chief economist for the Asia-Pacific, emphasized the need for balanced, evidence-based responses: "Transparency, effective regulation and social protections are critical to guard against harms. We need more balance, less hysteria and hype."

The report concludes: democratizing access to AI — so that every country and community can benefit while protecting vulnerable people from disruption — should be the overarching goal for policymakers.