CGTN: China vows to make AI a driver for shared prosperity amid widening AI divide

SHANGHAI, July 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As Pakistan enters its annual monsoon season, accurate forecasts are crucial to protecting lives and livelihoods. Powered by artificial intelligence, China's MAZU meteorological system is helping Pakistan detect early warning signs and issue faster alerts for potential extreme weather events.

"Using this platform, we can make more accurate predictions of floods, droughts and other extreme weather events," said Furrukh Bashir, head of the Research and Development Department at the Pakistan Meteorological Department. "We look forward to seeing more products like this that can benefit people around the world."

Deployed in multiple countries, the system shows how AI can help address global challenges. Through open-source models, technology cooperation and international initiatives, China is working to make AI more accessible and ensure its benefits reach more people worldwide.

At the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance in Shanghai on Friday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called on countries to uphold a people-centered approach and work together to build a fair and inclusive global AI governance system.

"China, as a responsible major country, is always committed to providing international public goods relating to AI," Xi said.

Making AI a shared opportunity through openness

At the conference, Xi announced a series of measures to support global AI development, including helping 30 countries utilize the MAZU meteorological system, providing 5,000 AI training opportunities for developing countries over the next five years, and establishing international AI application cooperation centers with ASEAN, the League of Arab States, the African Union, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS.

China has also embraced open-source development to promote more inclusive global AI growth.

Chinese models such as DeepSeek and Alibaba's Qwen have gained global attention for their high efficiency, affordability and openness, enabling developers and businesses to adapt AI technologies at lower costs. Official data shows that China's open-source AI models have recently surpassed 10 billion cumulative downloads worldwide.

In Africa, for example, DeepSeek's open-source approach allows developers to freely download and fine-tune AI systems, helping strengthen local digital capabilities and foster homegrown innovation across the continent.

The approach has also significantly lowered costs. With pricing of just $0.27 per million input tokens and $1.10 per million output tokens, DeepSeek has reduced the entry barriers by more than 90% compared with some mainstream Western AI models, enabling more African users and businesses to participate in the digital transformation.

"China, as a developing country, understands the aspirations of many Global South countries for economic development and technological progress," said Zhang Weiwei, deputy director of the Institute for World Peace and Security Studies at the China Institute of International Studies.

Zhang said that China's open-source AI models enable countries to develop applications faster and at lower costs, allowing more developing nations to benefit from technological advancement.

Promoting global cooperation to bridge the AI divide

With AI technologies' rapid development, global AI divide is widening. The World Bank's Digital Progress and Trends Report 2025 highlighted significant gaps between high-income and middle- and low-income countries in AI systems and computing capacity. Meanwhile, global data center resources remain highly concentrated in developed economies, with Africa accounting for less than 1% of global capacity.

To address these widening gaps, Xi called on countries to help developing nations enhance AI capabilities, bridge the digital divide and build a globally accepted governance framework to ensure that emerging technologies benefit humanity as a whole.

China has long advocated for a fair and inclusive global AI governance system. In 2023, it proposed the Global AI Governance Initiative, followed by the AI Capacity-Building Action Plan for Good and for All in 2024 and the AI+ International Cooperation Initiative in 2025. These efforts aim to promote responsible AI development and help bridge the digital divide.

China has also worked to create platforms for international cooperation. It launched the Center for Global AI Innovative Governance (CGAIG) and the Group of Friends for International Cooperation on AI Capacity Building, bringing together countries to strengthen dialogue, share knowledge and enhance capacity building.

The signing of the agreement establishing the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization in Shanghai on Thursday marked another step toward advancing global AI cooperation and promoting the safe, equitable and beneficial development of artificial intelligence.

From open-source models and AI training programs to global governance initiatives, China is working to make artificial intelligence a shared driver of innovation and development, ensuring that the benefits of this transformative technology, once enjoyed by only a few, reach more countries and communities.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2026-07-17/China-vows-to-make-AI-a-driver-for-shared-prosperity-amid-AI-gap-1OQR3INoGdy/p.html

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