The International Monetary Fund (IMF) points out that investments in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure are crucial to sustaining global economic growth around 3%. Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF's Managing Director, emphasized that Asian countries supplying technological equipment are major beneficiaries of this scenario.
During meetings held by the IMF and the World Bank in Bangkok, Thailand, Georgieva stressed that resources allocated to AI help compensate for the impacts caused by the decrease in energy supply while simultaneously boosting the economies of the region.
In already developed Asian economies, investment in AI has the potential to add between 0.5 and 1 percentage point to economic growth. In emerging Asian countries, the estimated effect is between 0.2 and 0.8 percentage points.
Georgieva emphatically stated that AI is already part of reality, whether accepted or rejected. In July, the IMF had projected global growth of 3% for 2026, with an update to these projections expected on Tuesday. According to her, technological infrastructure helps maintain stable economic activity even in the face of energy supply difficulties.
Among the main producers in the technological supply chain are the United States, China, and India. Asia also has several companies responsible for building this infrastructure, which benefits nations like Thailand, the host of the meetings.
The scope of artificial intelligence transcends the economic sphere. Georgieva described the technology as a 'slow-moving tsunami,' whose implications extend to the labor market, education, and tax collection. Furthermore, the migration of income from labor to capital may force changes in how governments collect taxes.
The IMF calculates that, over time, 40% of jobs may be modified, degraded, or eliminated due to AI. A preliminary study by the institution revealed that 10% of jobs in the United States already required technology-related skills.
While routine and repetitive tasks tend to decrease, sectors such as civil construction and data centers are seeing an increase in vacancies, including positions with lower remuneration.
Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, mentioned that smaller versions of AI, which do not rely on large language models, have the capacity to increase productivity in agriculture, health, and education in developing nations.
Meanwhile, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, President of Singapore, raised concerns about the drop in demand for newly graduated professionals. He stated that there is an immediate challenge: 'the first step in a career, the first job after graduation, is registering lower demand.'
Shanmugaratnam also warned that without actions to expand access to the benefits of technology, AI risks exacerbating disparities in growth and job creation between developed and developing countries.
To address these challenges, authorities focused on three areas of attention. The IMF and World Bank meetings bring together approximately 18,000 participants, including financial representatives from the fund's 191 members. The debate aims to harmonize the economic gains brought by artificial intelligence with its effects on employment and the distribution of opportunities.