The AI-DPI Nexus: The Future of Public Interest Technology
16 Feb 20261:30 PM – 2:30 PMBharat Mandapam, West Wing Room No. 6
Speakers
Antonio Zaballos, Asian Development Bank
Dr. Olubayo Adekanmbi, Data Science Nigeria
Howard Lakougna, Gates Foundation
Kamya Chandra, CDPI
Kay McGowan, Digital Impact Alliance
Keyzom Ngodup Massally, UNDP Chief Digital Office
Olivier Twagirayezu, Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Rwanda
Seydina Ndiaye, Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) and the UN High-Level Advisory Body on AI, Senegal
Vyjayanti Desai, World Bank
Global policy discourse largely treats AI and DPI separately. AI discussions focus on model safety, compute governance, workforce displacement. DPI conversations center on digital identity, digital payment, data exchange. AI-DPI convergence can create exponential value and new risk categories. While this convergence accelerates, critical questions remain: How can DPI lower barriers for local AI innovation while preventing new forms of exclusion? How can responsible AI systems be built in resource-constrained environments using DPI approaches?