Artificial intelligence could enable developing countries to gain a century's worth of development in a decade if they address power, connectivity and skills gaps quickly, the World Bank said in a report on Tuesday.
Indermit Gill, the World Bank's chief economist, stated that emerging economies have more to gain and less to fear from AI than richer nations, noting that widespread job losses are less of a threat.
Generative AI threatens 14.2% of jobs in rich countries, which is three times more than the 4.5% exposed in low- and middle-income countries, the report found. Meanwhile, jobs expected to benefit from productivity gains stand at 16.2% in developing economies and 18.7% in high-income nations.
Gill said emerging economies do not need vast resources or bespoke large language models to benefit, adding that adapting small, low-cost AI tools to local conditions can improve medical care, education, judicial services and agriculture.
The report warned that governments must improve electricity and internet access while guarding against greater income inequality, misinformation and political repression. Gill cautioned that developing nations cannot afford to miss this technological revolution after missing the first one.