This article is published in association with United Nations.
Millions of jobs across Asia could be at risk as the AI industry booms at the expense of poorer nations still struggling to provide basic digital access and literacy, UN economists said on Tuesday.
Just as industrialisation in the 19th century “split the world into a wealthy few and the impoverished”, the AI revolution could do the same.
“Countries that invest in skills, computing power and sound governance systems will benefit, others risk being left far behind,” warned Philip Schellekens, Chief Economist for the UN Development Programme for the Asia and Pacific region.
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In a new report, the agency highlighted that women and young adults face the biggest threat from AI in the workplace, with wider improvements in health, education and income potentially falling by the wayside.
Meanwhile, the technology juggernaut is expected to inject nearly $1 trillion in economic gains over the next decade across Asia alone, data indicates.
The UN agency said that although China, Singapore and South Korea have invested heavily in – and benefited massively from – AI, entry-level workers in many South Asian nations face “significant exposure” to changes already underway, including automation.
“Limited infrastructure, skills, computing power, and governance capacity constrain the potential benefits of AI while amplifying risks, including job displacement, data exclusion, and indirect impacts such as rising global energy and water demands from AI-intensive systems,” UNDP said.
Job protection
To prevent a looming jobs crunch, UNDP is urging governments to consider the ethics of AI before rolling it out further – and to ensure this is done so in as inclusive a way as possible.
“AI is racing ahead, and many countries are still at the starting line,” said Kanni Wignaraja, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.
“The Asia and Pacific experience highlights how quickly gaps can emerge between those shaping AI and those being shaped by it.”
Basic needs to fulfil
For countries including Cambodia, Papua New Guinea and Vietnam, the priority isn’t so much developing AI as making use of existing and relatively simple voice-based tools that frontline health workers and farmers can use, even when the internet is down.
The Asia-Pacific region is home to more than 55 per cent of the world’s population, putting it at the centre of AI transition.
According to UNDP, the region hosts more than half of global AI users and is rapidly expanding its innovation footprint; China alone holds nearly 70 per cent of global AI patents, while six countries host more than 3,100 newly funded AI companies.
“AI could lift annual GDP growth in the region by around two percentage points and raise productivity by up to five per cent in sectors such as health and finance,” the UN agency said in its report.
It notes how the Afghanistan’s average income is 200 times lower than in Singapore, which partly explains why AI take-up is concentrated in the hands of so few wealthy countries today.
“We’re not starting from a level playing field in this region,” said Mr. Schellekens…This is the most unequal region in the whole world.”
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