Signal UNDP "The Next Great Divergence" Report on AI and Global Inequality

Summary

UNDP released its flagship report “The Next Great Divergence: Why AI May Widen Inequality Between Countries” on 2 December 2025, warning that unmanaged AI could widen gaps between countries across three domains: people, the economy and governance. The report notes that for much of the last half-century, lower-income countries had been closing the gap with higher-income ones through an “era of convergence,” which AI risks eroding without deliberate, inclusive policy choices. Asia and the Pacific, home to over 55% of the world's population and more than half of global AI users, sits at the center of the transition, with China accounting for nearly 70% of global AI patents and more than 3,100 newly funded AI startups in the region. UNDP projects that by 2027 more than 40% of global AI-related data breaches may stem from misuse of generative AI, reflecting how governance safeguards have not kept pace with adoption. UNDP officials, including Regional Director Kanni Wignaraja and Chief Economist Philip Schellekens, warned that continued divergence carries spillover risks for security and migration, while urging investment in connectivity, AI literacy, infrastructure and inclusive regulation as a phased alternative path.