Chen Yuxiang, a distinguished engineer from IBM, speaks at the "AI Governance and Sustainable Development: for Good and for All" Workshop during the World Internet Conference Asia-Pacific Summit in Hong Kong on April 14. [Photo/wicinternet.org]

"Artificial intelligence (AI) should not only empower various industries, but also extend its reach to remote areas to bridge the digital divide", said Chen Yuxiang, a distinguished engineer from IBM, at the "AI Governance and Sustainable Development: for Good and for All" Workshop during the 2025 World Internet Conference Asia-Pacific Summit in Hong Kong on April 14.

According to Chen, AI inclusiveness can be viewed from the perspectives of technology providers, consumers (individuals and enterprises) and regulators (governments and third-party industry regulators).

Challenges in AI development such as expensive infrastructure, data breach risks and high energy consumption have become barriers for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), he said. 

Chen introduced IBM's AI product Watson, which has a variety of models, both local and on cloud, with their core parts being open-source. It is conducive for industries, especially SMEs, to start with small models, taking into consideration deployment needs for models of different scales, he added.

Regarding AI's reach to remote areas, "it is essentially a matter of talent cultivation," he said. IBM has promoted the development of online colleges by cooperating with government agencies around the world as part of its efforts in global AI talent cultivation, he noted.

He also pointed out that current AI governance remains mainly as initiatives. Enterprises should classify the challenges in AI governance, build an indicator system, and equip it with testing tools and operational methods, to contribute to AI development, he said.