UNCTAD urges broader AI investment across skills and connectivity

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UNCTAD urges broader AI investment

Highlights

UNCTAD reports greenfield AI infrastructure investment is growing at an average annual rate of 47% from 2020 to 2025, now forming 60% of all strategic greenfield investment.
Global AI investment and innovation remain highly concentrated, with 100 firms responsible for 40% of global R&D, prompting calls for broader access at the World Investment Forum 2026 in Doha.
UNCTAD emphasizes economic value from AI use depends on investments in skills, connectivity, finance access, and data protection, beyond building core infrastructure.

Doha forum sets out AI investment priorities

As reported by UN Trade and Development, announced greenfield investment in AI infrastructure grows by an average of 47% a year between 2020 and 2025, with AI infrastructure now accounting for three fifths of all greenfield investment in strategic sectors worldwide.

The agency says the current boom remains concentrated in a small number of economies, while 100 companies account for 40% of global research and development. At the World Investment Forum 2026 in Doha, the event's first dedicated AI track is bringing together investors, policymakers and technology leaders to examine how financing, governance, innovation and skills can spread the benefits more widely.

UNCTAD says building data centres and other computing assets alone does not ensure that developing economies capture AI-driven value. It argues that effective use of the technology by businesses and public services also requires reliable electricity, affordable connectivity, research capacity, access to finance and usable data.

Acting Secretary-General Pedro Manuel Moreno says most economic value will come from AI use in sectors such as agriculture, health systems, logistics and public services. He says getting that use right requires separate investment in skills, connectivity and adoption capacity.

Inclusive adoption shapes economic payoff

UNCTAD's agenda for wider AI gains centres on three priorities: investing across the full ecosystem, broadening access to finance, tools and markets for smaller firms, and strengthening trust through data protection, cybersecurity, interoperable standards and resource-efficient infrastructure.

The agency draws a parallel with the digital economy, where much of the wealth created by the internet came from how it was used rather than who built the cables or hosted the servers. It says AI may follow a similar pattern, making local-language applications, enterprise development and public-sector adoption critical to long-term economic returns.

As part of that push, UNCTAD is working with the International Telecommunication Union to connect public and private partners with investment solutions aimed at more inclusive AI deployment.

In our earlier coverage of AI’s impact on business competitiveness, we explained how the technology is raising performance standards and leaving less room for companies that rely on “average” execution. The article emphasized that staying relevant increasingly depends on revisiting investment priorities, upgrading workforce skills, and changing decision-making and operating models so AI can translate into productivity gains.

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