BRICS is advancing a sovereign AI strategy with the adoption of a Responsible AI Charter and a $5B Digital Sovereignty Fund. Major investments target AI parks, data centers, and chip production to reduce dependence on Western tech. The bloc aims to reshape the global AI landscape with inclusive, non-Western governance and infrastructure.
At the 2024 BRICS Summit in Kazan, member states adopted the “Charter on Responsible AI”—a document promoting transparent, inclusive, and culturally sensitive AI development. In contrast to the EU’s AI Act, which is widely seen in the Global South as restrictive and Eurocentric, this charter positions BRICS as a leader in ethical, yet flexible AI governance.
The New Development Bank (NDB) launched a $5B “Digital Sovereignty Fund” to finance major AI infrastructure projects across member states. Investments include AI research parks, data centers, and semiconductor fabs—highlighted by the UAE’s AI cloud cluster and Ethiopia’s AI Research and Education Zone in Addis Ababa.
BRICS is building a non-Western AI compute stack to achieve technological autonomy. China and India are advancing 7nm chip production, while the UAE has heavily invested in its national AI conglomerate, G42. The bloc is no longer merely catching up—it is redefining the global digital order.