Exclusive: UN agency tests alternative to major cloud giants
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A United Nations agency is teaming up with a Switzerland-based organization to help governments build AI-powered software without relying solely on U.S.-based cloud providers.
Why it matters: Concerns about the world's reliance on foreign cloud providers have been mounting as governments question how much control they retain over sensitive citizen data stored on infrastructure operated by companies based abroad.
Driving the news: UNDP and the DFINITY Foundation are launching a pilot program to help governments test AI-powered applications that give them more control over where their data and computing infrastructure reside.
- UNDP plans to select five countries for the initial pilots within roughly a month, with each project built around a specific problem proposed by participating governments.
- The new pilot builds on DFINITY's ongoing work with Pakistan, where the government is incorporating DFINITY's technology into its national digital infrastructure and already has several applications live using its tools, Sohail Munir, chair of the Pakistan Digital Authority, told Axios in a statement.
The big picture: As governments rush to adopt AI, some are experimenting with ways to build AI-powered public services without becoming dependent on major cloud providers for the underlying data and infrastructure.
- Relying on cloud hyperscalers based in the U.S. and China could leave the companies behind these AI tools beholden to the data storage regulations and surveillance apparatuses in their home countries.
Zoom in: Once selected, each country will work with UNDP and DFINITY to turn a specific need or problem into a project that can be built and tested using DFINITY's technology, Robert Pasicko, who leads the UNDP's Alternative Finance Lab, told Axios.
- Pasicko expects the five participants will likely spread across Latin America, Africa and Asia.
Zoom out: In conceiving the pilot, Pasicko said he was hearing more from member states who were concerned about where the data fueling AI applications was being stored — and their reliance on U.S. tech giants.
- One potential use case, Pasicko said, would involve using AI to analyze medical scans from roughly 200,000 patients while keeping the sensitive health data under government control.
- For some countries, Pasicko said, the question is increasingly whether they can take advantage of AI while keeping sensitive government and citizen data under their own control.
Between the lines: Dominic Williams, DFINITY's founder and chief scientist, told Axios that the AI boom is raising the stakes for countries that rely heavily on foreign technology providers for digital infrastructure.
- "If someone could flick a kill switch and knock out your cloud and your AI, your country is going to grind to a halt," Williams said.
What's next: UNDP plans to evaluate the pilots based on factors including cost, ease of use and whether participating officials think the technology is worth scaling, Pasicko said.
- The pilots are designed to help UNDP determine where decentralized AI and cloud infrastructure actually make sense — and where they don't.
