Archive · 5 Oct 2026
World Bank chief says small AI can empower India's farmers
World Bank President Ajay Banga said AI can be useful in different ways around the world.
He described a phone tool that helps women farmers in Uttar Pradesh identify plant diseases.
A farmer can take a picture of a sick leaf and get advice about what to do.
Banga called these practical tools “small AI.”
He said they could also help with education, training and healthcare.
He believes large AI systems are less likely to affect jobs soon in poorer countries than in richer ones.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis raised a concern about jobs in wealthier countries.
He said AI could affect office work, while robots could put pressure on manufacturing jobs.
World Bank President Ajay Banga said smaller, predictive AI tools could improve productivity in farming, education, skills and healthcare in developing economies.
He described an initiative in Uttar Pradesh, India, developed with Google, that helps women farmers identify crop diseases using basic mobile phones.
The tool lets a farmer photograph a diseased leaf and receive a diagnosis and information about an insecticide available through a local cooperative.
Banga said large language models could potentially affect one-third of jobs in developed economies, single-digit shares in middle-income countries and no jobs in low-income countries.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis warned that AI and robotics could put pressure on white-collar and manufacturing jobs in developed economies.
- Who
- World Bank President Ajay Banga and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis discussed AI's potential and risks.
- What
- Banga argued that smaller AI tools could help farmers and other workers in developing economies, while Mitsotakis warned of job pressures in developed economies.
- When
- During a discussion at Columbia University; no date is specified.
- Where
- Columbia University; the farming example Banga cited is in Uttar Pradesh, India.
- Why
- Banga said smaller predictive tools offer practical opportunities where the resources needed for large AI systems are scarce; Mitsotakis highlighted risks to jobs in developed economies.
Potential benefits
Job displacement concerns
AI's effects on developing economies
Potential benefits
Ajay Banga said small, predictive AI tools can improve farming, education, skills and healthcare, and argued that immediate job impacts from large language models are lower in developing economies.
Job displacement concerns
Kyriakos Mitsotakis cautioned that the benefits for farmers in India do not remove concerns about workers in developed economies.
AI and employment in developed economies
Potential benefits
Banga said large language models could potentially affect one-third of jobs in developed economies, distinguishing this from the lower potential impact he described in poorer countries.
Job displacement concerns
Mitsotakis warned that AI could target white-collar work and robotics could affect remaining manufacturing jobs, leaving less room for optimism for middle-class workers.
- World Bank president
- Ajay Banga
- Farming example
- An AI application in Uttar Pradesh helps women farmers diagnose crop diseases with basic mobile phones.
- Technology partner mentioned
- Potential job impact in developed economies
- Banga said large language models could potentially affect one-third of jobs.
- Potential job impact in middle-income countries
- Banga described the figure as being in the single digits.
- Potential job impact in low-income countries
- Banga said the figure was zero.
- Discussion moderator
- CNN's Fareed Zakaria