Global North-South's Diverging Potentials of AI in Higher Education

This chapter analyzes the divergent potentials of artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education across the Global North and Global South, emphasizing the intersection of innovation and digital inequalities. It underscores that while AI facilitates specific types of education, efficient management, and sophisticated research in technologically advanced environments, its unequal global distribution exacerbates underlying inequities. Authors utilize a bibliometric analysis and institutional case study method to illustrate differences in digital infrastructure, research capability, policy frameworks, and pedagogical preparedness. The chapter presents an integrative framework for equitable AI adoption, using ideas of the digital divide, diffusion of innovation, and the political economics of knowledge. Ultimately, it contends that inclusive and contextually aware deployment is crucial for AI to act as a catalyst for educational reform rather than a tool that exacerbates current imbalances.