Global AI Ethics: A Review of the Social Impacts and Ethical Implications of Artificial Intelligence

AI's impacts vary significantly by region and culture: The paper's analysis of over 800 academic sources across five global regions reveals that AI doesn't affect all societies equally. Social and cultural contexts shape both how AI is deployed and how people experience its effects, meaning solutions developed in the U.S. or Western Europe may not be appropriate elsewhere.

AI is widening inequality globally, especially in developing countries: Research shows AI-driven technologies in the U.S. already entrench social divides and disadvantage historically marginalized groups. The paper warns this pattern exists worldwide, with low- and middle-income countries facing greater vulnerability to negative impacts while being less likely to benefit from AI's potential gains.

Western perspectives dominate AI ethics discussions, creating blind spots: The current conversation about responsible AI is heavily biased toward U.S. viewpoints, with limited research from outside Western contexts. This geographic imbalance means important insights and concerns from other regions are being overlooked in global AI governance.

We need more ground-level research to understand real-world AI impacts: The paper calls for rigorous ethnographic research—on-the-ground studies that examine how AI actually affects communities in different parts of the world. Current academic literature lacks this kind of detailed, localized understanding necessary for developing truly responsible AI practices.