World Bank Economist Seeks Cooperation from Japan on AI

By Adriana Reinecke Washington, Feb. 8 (Jiji Press)–World Bank Chief Economist Indermit Gill has expressed hopes for Japan’s cooperation in addressing global economic disparities that may widen due to the uneven adoption of artificial intelligence technology. In a recent interview, Gill said he believes that productivity gains from the adoption of AI could become a key driver of growth in a global economy that has lost its long-term growth momentum. Although the uneven adoption of AI could widen global economic disparities, Gill said Japan could play a key role in addressing this risk by promoting technology transfer through trade and investment. The global economy has shown “surprising resilience” despite significant uncertainty due to the high tariff policies of U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration, Gill said. He warned, however, that expanding public and private debts and sluggish growth in developing economies are acting as a drag and leading to “declining dynamism.” In its global economic outlook released last month, the World Bank forecast global growth at 2.6 pct this year and 2.7 pct next year, projecting that “the 2020s are on track to be the weakest decade for global growth since the 1960s.” Against this backdrop, Gill emphasized that “there is huge potential for AI to lead to greater efficiency,” expressing hope that it could serve as a stepping stone to break out of the current growth slowdown. In particular, in the United States there is growing concern that the surge in AI-related investment may be a “bubble.” Gill acknowledged that there would be “waves,” but took an optimistic view, saying that “the very nature of technological progress in a capitalist economy involves these sorts of waves.” Some worry that differences in the pace of AI adoption could further widen the gap between advanced economies and low-income countries. Gill stated that “because a large part of these technology transfers happen through trade and foreign direct investment, if those continue, then I think there will be technology spillovers.” The outcome “depends a lot on what happens to the world trading system,” he said, calling on countries to remove nontariff and other trade barriers. He also noted that even among advanced economies there are disparities, observing that “(the) AI boom and so on that you see in the U.S., you don’t see in Europe.” Regarding technology transfer to help narrow economic disparities, Gill stressed: “Our second-largest shareholder is Japan. So we feel that we should have a very close partnership with Japan on issues related to knowledge transfers.” In 2024, the World Bank established the Institute for Economic Development, headed by Gill, to address problems related to development in emerging and developing economies. The institute has bases in Tokyo, Washington and Rome. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]