The future of artificial intelligence is no longer just a question of technological power, but of who gets to shape it. The AI for Developing Countries Forum (AIFOD) Winter Summit which took place at the United Nations Conference Centre (UNCC) in Bangkok, Thailand on February 4-6, 2026, brought this challenge into the spotlight.

American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) was represented at this prestigious global forum by Dr. Carmen Z. Lamagna, Member, Board of Trustee and Former Vice Chancellor, AIUB and Prof. Dr. Dip Nandi, Associate Dean, Faculty of Science and Technology, AIUB. Their participation demonstrated AIUB’s consistent engagement in international dialogues on responsible and inclusive artificial intelligence, aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The AI for Developing Countries Forum (AIFOD) was established to create fair opportunities for everyone to access artificial intelligence which brings together policymakers, academics, technologists and development practitioners from around the world to build AI solutions that meet specific local needs instead of using standardized solutions. The Bangkok summit focused on how developing nations can move beyond being data suppliers and technology consumers to becoming true architects of their own digital future.

AIUB Leads Dialogue on Building Local AI Capacity

A central highlight of Day 1 was the panel session titled “How Can Developing Countries Build AI That’s Truly Ours?”, moderated by Prof. Dr. Dip Nandi. In this role, Prof. Nandi steered a critical global discussion on the widening AI divide, where high-income nations - representing only 17% of the world’s population - currently control nearly 87% of existing AI models.

Opening the session with data from the World Bank’s Digital Progress and Trends Report 2025, Prof. Nandi described the current moment as an “era of divergence.” He noted that many developing countries are data rich but infrastructure poor, highlighting that while South Asia generates nearly one-fifth of the world’s data, it holds only about 3% of global data center capacity.

Framing the challenge around data, economic, and cultural sovereignty, Prof. Nandi emphasized that building AI that is “truly our own” is not about isolation, but about ensuring that local languages, social realities, and development priorities are reflected in the systems being built.

Concluding the session, Prof. Nandi summarized the pathway forward through what he termed as the “Four C’s” of AI readiness: Connectivity, Compute, Context, and Competency. The session echoed the summit’s broader message: “The Future Will Be Written by Us, Not for Us.” The AIFOD Summit participation of AIUB reaffirmed its dedication in ensuring that developing nations will participate in shaping the future of artificial intelligence technology instead of remaining as passive observers.