BEIJING, July 20 (APP): Developing countries have a great opportunity to leverage artificial intelligence (AI), with a series of AI initiatives launched in Shanghai in recent days, said Jason Slater, Head of Digital Transformation and AI at the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
“There’s clearly a window of opportunity right now, especially for developing countries,” Slater told China Economic Net (CEN) on the sidelines of the World Artificial Intelligence Council’s (WAIC) AI Governance Forum.
UNIDO used the conference to launch the Industrial AI Governance Framework, developed with Tsinghua University and supported by partners such as the British Standards Institute. It sets out readiness indicators aimed at helping countries assess where they stand in AI adoption and identify a path forward, Slater said.
He spoke days after 29 countries signed the Agreement to Establish the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) in Shanghai on July 16, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi signing the agreement and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres also in attendance. At the opening of the conference the next day, China pledged to provide 5,000 AI training and seminar opportunities to developing countries over the next five years.
“I think we started our journey with this approach to governance,” Slater said.
He said he visited Sierra Leone a few weeks ago and found strong local interest in applying AI to critical minerals, renewable energy, agriculture and food security. Acting on that interest requires access to technology, computing power and skills, along with clear rules covering data and sovereignty, he said.
But developing countries have something to offer in return, he said. “There’s a huge amount of untapped talent and data out there,” Slater said. “AI is a tool, but it has to have a purpose. These countries have real challenges that are yet to be solved.”
He cited countries hoping to pioneer the application of AI in rice production and electrification as examples, saying they could contribute use cases, regulatory sandboxes, and policy experience. “We should not underestimate the desire of these countries to leverage AI and help shape the future dialogue around governance,” he said.
Asked if the UN agency would work with WAICO, Slater said he was repeating the words of Guterres and UNIDO Director-General Gerd Müller: “We will be partners.” He added: “We’re going to observe and see what happens.”
Many of WAICO’s founding members are also UNIDO members and are likely to look to the UN system for advice and guidance, he said.
