What will the AI revolution mean for the global south?
Krystal Maughan, a Trinidadian PhD student, warns the AI boom may echo colonial inequalities, sidelining the global south in research, funding and energy-intensive compute. Visa barriers, weak infrastructure and low-paid data labour mirror historic exploitation of raw materials. True AI democratization demands regional cooperation—akin to a BRICS alliance—to build sovereign data markets, infrastructure and regulations. Only by centring diverse perspectives can AI benefit marginalized communities and foster genuine global equity.