The World Bank has said artificial intelligence could give developing economies a rare chance to close ground with wealthier nations, according to its World Development Report 2026: The Promise of Artificial Intelligence, published on 4 August 2026. The report finds that jobs in developing economies face an average automation risk of 4.5 percent from AI, far below the 14.2 percent risk estimated for high-income countries, while 16.2 percent of jobs in developing economies could see meaningful productivity gains.
“AI has thrown developing economies a lifeline, and they should seize it,” said Indermit Gill, the World Bank’s Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, according to the release.
A narrow window
The report argues that, rather than displacing workers at the scale many feared, AI could help developing countries improve healthcare, education, agriculture and government services more quickly than earlier technologies allowed. Gaurav Nayyar, director of the report, said “the window to get this right is narrow,” pointing to gaps that could leave countries behind if they are not addressed soon.
Those gaps are stark in infrastructure terms. According to the World Bank, nearly one-third of rural schools in Sub-Saharan Africa lack reliable electricity, and more than two-thirds lack dependable internet access. The Bank points to its Mission 300 initiative, which aims to connect 300 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa to electricity by 2030, as one foundation piece needed before AI adoption can scale.
A three-phase approach
The report recommends that governments first adopt AI tools that already exist elsewhere, then adapt them to local languages, industries and needs, and only later work toward developing frontier AI capacity of their own. This staged approach, the Bank argues, avoids the trap of trying to compete at the cutting edge before basic connectivity, skills and institutions are in place.
Why It Matters
For countries where growth has slowed and public finances are stretched, a technology that raises productivity without the job losses associated with earlier waves of automation would be significant. The report’s central caution is that the benefit is not automatic: without investment in electricity, connectivity, skills and institutions, the same technology could widen rather than narrow the gap between rich and poor nations.
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