AI technology, if it is deployed equitably worldwide, can bring immense benefits by resolving many of the existential threats facing humans and by helping us achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs ) to deliver a more sustainable, safer and poverty free world for all. AI Academies around the World have a critical role to play in this task
At present 2.5 billion people in the developing world do not have access to internet or the benefits and services that this can provide. However, with emergence of distributed renewable energy systems and affordable satellite based internet, most will be connected in the next few years. This opens up enormous opportunities and new markets for AI entrepreneurs and busineseses to integrate AI into existing products and to develop new products and services to meet the needs of these previously underserved communities.
If the digital divide is to be closed, millions of AI entrepreneurs need to be mobilised, trained and deployed to meet the needs of the developing world and to help its populations share in the benefits of our digitally connected world and the emerging additional benefits of the AI era.
There are potential human resources in the developing world that are not currently being fiully utilised. For example, there are over 30 million unemployed graduates and over 200 million workers will be displaced because of AI or robotics. In addition, there are 216 million registered businesses in the developing wprld. Many in these groups could be mobilised, trained and deployed to meet the needs of the underserved billions.
AI Academies can play a crucial role in helping to create this million strong “army” of AI entrepreneurs to help us deliver the SDGs and thereby help create the better, fairer world we all desire.
