Microsoft has committed up to $50 billion through 2030 to expand access to artificial intelligence across developing economies, warning that unequal AI adoption risks widening existing global inequalities.
Company executives speaking at the India AI Impact Summit revealed that recent research shows AI uptake in wealthier nations is nearly twice as high as in countries of the Global South. This growing imbalance, they said, could leave millions without access to the economic and social benefits of the technology.
Brad Smith, Microsoft’s vice chair and president, and Natasha Crampton, the company’s chief responsible AI officer, said narrowing this gap is essential for inclusive growth. They outlined a strategy built on five pillars: infrastructure development, skills training, language inclusion, support for local innovation, and measurement of AI adoption.
Microsoft reported spending more than $8 billion last year on data center capacity across Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The company is also partnering with telecom operators to extend internet connectivity to 250 million people, including 100 million in Africa. Those investments are designed to strengthen data security, promote digital sovereignty and attract sustainable foreign investment.
Recognizing that hardware alone cannot drive progress, Microsoft has invested more than $2 billion in digital education initiatives for schools and nonprofit organizations. Through its Elevate program, the company aims to train 20 million people in AI-related skills by 2028. An educator-focused component will support 2 million teachers in modernizing instruction across thousands of institutions.
To reduce linguistic barriers, Microsoft is backing programs that help AI systems operate in underserved languages. Initiatives such as LINGUA Africa are funding the creation of AI models for African languages, while new evaluation tools are being developed to ensure systems function reliably across cultural contexts.
The company is also focusing on practical AI applications tailored to local challenges. In Kenya, Microsoft is working with NASA Harvest and government agencies to apply satellite data and AI to food security monitoring. Other projects aim to improve speech recognition for African languages and create multilingual AI assistants for communities in East Africa and South Asia.
To guide future investments, Microsoft is expanding its data-driven approach to monitoring AI use worldwide. Using information from GitHub, Azure Foundry and a global adoption index developed with the World Bank, the company is mapping where AI is growing and where gaps remain. Insights from India’s rapidly expanding developer base are also helping shape policy and investment decisions.
Microsoft said closing the AI divide will require cooperation among governments, businesses and civil society. By pairing infrastructure with education, language inclusion and local innovation, the company said it hopes its investments will unlock new economic opportunities across emerging markets.
