Digital Progress and Trends Report 2025: AI Foundations

The report's central argument is that AI is reshaping how people learn, work and live, with the potential to widen access to knowledge, boost productivity and open new markets, but that low- and middle-income countries face steep challenges in adapting or deploying it at scale. It points to a promising trend: many countries adopting what it calls "Small AI", affordable, easier-to-use applications designed to run on everyday devices such as mobile phones, already extending AI's reach into agriculture, health and education.

To frame its recommendations, the report organizes AI readiness around "four Cs": connectivity (energy and digital infrastructure), compute (AI chips, data centers and cloud computing), context (data), and competency (skills). Together, it argues, these form the foundation of inclusive and effective AI ecosystems that let countries adopt, adapt and innovate responsibly. Building on this, the report frames the World Bank's role as helping countries strengthen these foundations, advance data governance, pursue regulatory and institutional reform, invest in skills, foster local innovation ecosystems, and support competition policy so AI's benefits are distributed more broadly.

The report is published with a full downloadable version and a shorter overview, plus supporting materials: data visualizations, a factsheet of key findings, a recording of the launch event, policy notes including a regional note for Africa and country briefs for Türkiye and India, a gender brief on women and financial inclusion, and additional multimedia.

It is aimed at policymakers, development researchers and institutions working on digital and AI policy, particularly those focused on low- and middle-income countries. As a policy report, its "Small AI" framing and country-level guidance reflect the World Bank's own analysis and recommendations rather than independently verified outcomes.