World Bank urges developing economies to adopt AI rapidly as growth hits 30-year low

The World Bank’s upcoming World Development Report for 2026 delivers a blunt message to developing economies: adopt AI now, or risk falling further behind. The institution’s chief economist, Indermit Gill, went so far as to call artificial intelligence a “lifeline” for countries struggling with stagnant growth and crumbling public services. The World Bank isn’t telling these countries to build the next GPT-5 or pour billions into massive data centers. The real opportunity lies in what the report calls “small AI,” cheap, adaptable tools that can be deployed in healthcare clinics, classrooms, and government offices right now. The growth problem AI is supposed to fix Developing economies are experiencing their weakest average growth in 30 years. The World Bank’s report frames AI as a potential circuit-breaker for this malaise, with the potential to compress development timelines dramatically compared to historical technologies. The report specifically highlights health, education, agriculture, and public administration as sectors where small AI solutions could have immediate, tangible impact. The framework the World Bank proposes is “adopt-adapt-advance,” paired with what it calls the...