Development of International Legal Support for Minimizing the Risks of Digital Inequality when Using Artificial Intelligence

The increasing development of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies over the past decade and a half, in addition to positive innovations, also leads to an increase in the risks of digital inequality not only at the level of nation states, but also on a universal scale, which objectively requires research aimed at preparing international legal acts limiting the development of this kind of inequality. Among other things, the paper presents the main criteria for the use of AI technologies, which are the causes of the digital divide under study and possible solutions to problematic issues of the digital divide; it analyzes the ways in which AI can help reduce the digital divide. Logical, comparative, empirical, descriptive and others were used as the main methods of cognition during the research. In particular, the study revealed that today one of the fundamental aspects of the digital divide is access to AI technologies, because AI systems require computing power, infrastructure, and resources for their effective functioning, but not all established groups of individuals (communities and, among others, self-regulatory organizations), especially in developing regions of the world or areas of certain low-income countries, have full access to such opportunities and resources.. Lack of access to AI technologies can widen the digital divide, as it limits the ability of these communities to benefit from AI-based applications, such as, first of all, healthcare, education and economic opportunities, etc. Other fundamental aspects of the AI-driven digital divide include skills and education, bias and ethics, trust and privacy, economic inequality, and others. The scientific novelty of the study was also reflected in the conclusions, according to which the fundamental directions for the development of the concept of implementing measures to reduce the digital divide using AI at the international level were outlined.

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