Published: October 12, 2026
Artificial intelligence investment is becoming a significant force in the world economy, supporting demand for chips, data centres and computing services while raising difficult questions about employment and inequality. At the opening of the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok on October 12, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said AI infrastructure spending was helping keep global growth around 3%, even as energy-supply pressures weighed on the outlook.
AI investment is creating an economic boost
The IMF had forecast global growth of around 3% for 2026 in July and was due to publish an updated outlook. Georgieva said the AI investment boom was creating both a demand shock and an investment shock, with potential benefits for advanced Asian economies and emerging Asian economies. The scale of the impact will vary across countries, industries and companies.
Demand for advanced processors, servers, networking equipment, electricity and specialist infrastructure has expanded the role of Asian manufacturers and suppliers. The United States, China and India remain important parts of the AI supply chain, while other economies provide hardware and infrastructure that support the wider ecosystem.
Why the benefits are uneven
Investment can lift activity in places that manufacture equipment, build facilities or provide energy and services. But the benefits are not automatic or evenly distributed. Countries need reliable electricity, skilled workers, digital infrastructure, sound institutions and access to capital if they are to turn AI demand into productive and sustainable growth.
Economies that mainly import high-value hardware may face different outcomes from those that manufacture it. Smaller businesses can also struggle to adopt AI when they lack technical expertise, secure data systems or the resources to train staff. Public policy and affordable access may influence whether productivity gains spread beyond a handful of large firms.
The employment challenge
Georgieva warned that AI could augment, downgrade or eliminate about 40% of jobs over time, reflecting the broad range of possible effects rather than a prediction that 40% of workers will simply become unemployed. Some roles may become more productive; others may change substantially, and some tasks or positions may disappear while new kinds of work develop.
Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam highlighted a particular concern: fewer entry-level opportunities in sectors highly exposed to AI. Entry-level roles are often how graduates build professional judgement, learn workplace practices and progress towards more senior responsibilities. If routine junior tasks become automated, employers and educators may need to redesign how early-career workers acquire experience.
AI could improve services in developing economies
World Bank President Ajay Banga has promoted “small AI” applications that can generate practical productivity gains without requiring the largest models. In principle, targeted tools could support farmers, health services, teachers and local businesses. For example, AI systems may help analyse information, assist with routine administration or make specialist knowledge easier to access.
These benefits depend on local conditions. Tools must be accurate, affordable, secure and suited to the language and context of the people using them. Health and education applications also need appropriate professional oversight so that automation supports—not replaces—responsible human decisions.
Skills and education need to adapt
Workers may benefit from combining digital fluency with skills that are harder to automate fully, including communication, critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity and domain expertise. Employers can help by providing training, redesigning workflows transparently and assessing workers on outcomes rather than simply counting tasks completed.
Education systems face a related challenge. Training programmes need to teach people how to use AI tools responsibly, verify outputs and protect sensitive information. They should also give learners opportunities to practise judgement and collaboration, not just routine production that software may increasingly handle.
Managing risks and inequality
AI can widen gaps if productive firms and advanced economies capture most of the gains while workers and smaller businesses face disruption without support. Governments may need policies that help people retrain, improve access to digital infrastructure and ensure that tax and social-protection systems remain effective as the mix of labour and capital changes.
Rules must also address privacy, security, bias and accountability without unnecessarily blocking useful innovation. Organisations adopting AI should assess risks before deployment, keep humans responsible for consequential decisions and monitor whether systems perform fairly across different users.
What businesses should do now
Companies should evaluate specific tasks where AI can produce measurable improvements, such as reducing administrative delays or helping staff analyse information. Pilots should include clear success measures, data protection, staff consultation and a plan for handling errors. Buying a tool is not the same as changing a process successfully.
Leaders should also communicate how automation may affect roles and provide employees with realistic opportunities to develop new skills. A productivity strategy that ignores workforce transition may encounter resistance, lose institutional knowledge or increase inequality within the organisation.
What to watch from the IMF meetings
The IMF’s updated economic outlook and further discussion from finance and development officials should provide more detail on the balance between AI investment, energy costs, jobs and growth. Investors and policymakers will need to distinguish short-term spending from productivity gains that can be sustained over time.
AI is already changing the global economy, but its long-term effect will depend on how technology is deployed and who benefits. Investment can support growth; inclusive training, responsible governance and practical access will help determine whether those gains translate into better opportunities for workers and businesses across more countries.
Sources for context: Reuters reporting from the IMF and World Bank annual meetings, October 12, 2026; IMF background material on AI and labour markets.
All rights belong to their respective owners. This article contains references and insights based on publicly available information and sources. We do not claim ownership over any third-party content mentioned.
