At The Tensions of South and North

Abstract

Abstract This chapter aims to present a discourse of AI governance for and from the Global South, and contrast this with the Inclusive AI Governance discourse led largely out of Global North institutions. By doing so, it identifies gaps in the dominant AI governance discourse and advocates for its systemic restructuring. It proposes that key differences between the Global South and dominant Global North discourses can be explained in part by historic power dynamics, describing the coloniality of power in AI governance. It bridges these gaps by outlining critical concerns expressed by Global South actors but neglected by the dominant AI discourse—including digital sovereignty as relevant to low and middle-income countries, infrastructural and regulatory monopolies, harms associated with the labor and material supply chains of AI technologies, beta-testing, and commercial exploitation. It then offers three roles for Global South actors to substantively engage in the restructuring of AI governance processes.