GSMA warns of emerging global AI divide as three billion people remain offline and smartphone component costs soar

State of Mobile Internet Connectivity report calls for urgent action to boost access to affordable smartphones and ensure AI reaches everyone.

NEW YORK, Sept. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The GSMA today warned that the world risks creating a new global divide between AI 'haves' and 'have-nots' unless urgent action is taken to address the digital divide and make smartphones affordable for billions of people in low- and middle-income countries.

Launching its State of Mobile Internet Connectivity (SOMIC) Report 2026, the GSMA, which represents the mobile ecosystem worldwide, warns that while artificial intelligence is transforming economies and societies, its benefits will remain out of reach for more than 3.4 billion people who still do not use mobile internet – despite more than 90% of them already living within mobile broadband coverage. Without affordable smartphones, these people will remain unable to benefit from the AI revolution.

Sharp increases in the cost of smartphone memory and chipsets, driven by global demand for AI infrastructure and data centres are already feeding through into entry-level smartphone prices, placing internet access further beyond the reach of low-income consumers.

Vivek Badrinath, Director General of the GSMA, said: "Artificial intelligence has the potential to improve lives on an unprecedented scale, but AI is meaningless if people cannot get online in the first place. The greatest risk is not simply an AI divide between countries, but between people who can afford to participate in the digital economy and those who cannot. 

"Unless we protect the affordability of entry-level smartphones, billions of people risk being excluded from the next generation of digital services before they have even had the opportunity to experience the internet. Preventing that outcome requires coordinated action from policymakers, mobile operators, device manufacturers and component suppliers alike."

3.1 billion people continue to live within the footprint of mobile broadband networks but do not use mobile internet – the 'usage gap'. Handset affordability is the single biggest barrier to mobile internet adoption across surveyed low- and middle-income countries, followed by a lack of digital skills.

Previous GSMA analysis estimates that closing the mobile usage gap would generate $3.5 trillion in additional GDP between 2023 and 2030, with more than 90% of those benefits flowing to low- and middle-income countries. 

Read full press release here.