Balancing Global Majority AI Ambitions with Environmental Considerations

The promise of artificial intelligence as a developmental accelerator for Global Majority countries has captured considerable attention in policy circles, with proponents suggesting these technologies could help nations "fast-track" progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals. Yet this optimistic narrative obscures a more complex reality where AI's transformative potential intersects with significant risks already manifesting globally, with notable impacts in Global Majority countries. From exploitative labor practices in data annotation to algorithmic bias that deepens existing inequalities, communities worldwide are confronting the uneven distribution of AI's benefits and harms.