Description
The Political Economy of AI DevelopmentThis paper examines how the material conditions of Artificial Intelligence
production create new forms of technological dependency between the Global North
and South. While current discussions of AI democratization often focus on data
accessibility, this analysis reveals how the concentration of computational
infrastructure and specialized technical labour in a handful of Northern countries
reinforces core-periphery relations in the global technological order.
The research analyses three key aspects of AI production that perpetuate North-South
power dynamics: (1) the massive computational infrastructure requirements that create
insurmountable barriers to entry for Global South institutions, (2) the transformation of
Global South cultural heritage and knowledge into training data without meaningful
participation in its governance, and (3) the way technical expertise and labour flows
predominantly benefit Northern technology corporations, reflecting Cardoso’s concept
of ‘associated-dependent development’.
This transdisciplinary analysis, drawing from the epistemological intersection of political
economy, philosophy, and STS, presents a detailed examination of current Artificial Intelligence
development practices. The paper demonstrates how seemingly neutral technical
decisions about model architecture, training data, and optimization metrics encode
specific economic and political priorities that systematically marginalize Global South
perspectives. The research draws particular attention to how recent proposals for ‘open
data’ and ‘AI democratization’ often mask what Andre Gunder Frank identified as the
‘development of underdevelopment’ in the technological sphere.
The paper concludes by proposing alternative frameworks for AI development that centre
Global South epistemologies and interests. These include new models of technological
cooperation, alternative approaches to data governance, and mechanisms for ensuring
more equitable distribution of AI’s benefits. By highlighting these structural inequalities
in AI production, this research contributes to broader discussions about technological
autonomy and creating more equitable forms of global technological development.
Keywords: AI infrastructure, Internet Studies, Data Studies
| Period | 25 Mar 2025 |
|---|---|
| Held at | University of Oxford |
| Degree of Recognition | International |