AI knows no borders: India must lead global fight for rules

Picture this: toward the end of India’s next general election, a highly realistic deepfake of a prominent candidate—showing them conceding defeat or making an inflammatory remark—spreads rapidly through WhatsApp and social media. By the time fact-checkers prove it false, the damage is done: confidence in the electoral process is destroyed, and the election result is left in doubt. This is not science fiction. It is a real and immediate danger, and exactly the reason why artificial intelligence (AI) can no longer function without strict, globally binding rules.

AI has moved out of the research laboratory and is now present in every aspect of daily life. It affects how people learn, how they access healthcare, how banks grant loans, how governments operate, and even how countries guard their borders. There is no doubt about the benefits: it increases productivity, drives medical advances, and enables innovation on an unprecedented scale. At the same time, the dangers are just as serious.

The uncontrolled spread of misinformation, automated cyberattacks that bring critical infrastructure to a standstill, opaque algorithms that target marginalised communities, serious infringements on privacy, and the alarming growth of autonomous weapons are all now evident. These problems do not respect national borders. An algorithm developed in San Francisco can decide the fate of a job applicant in Mumbai. A deepfake produced in Moscow can undermine a democracy in New Delhi. A cyber tool launched from anywhere can target essential services everywhere.

Countries around the world are competing for the lead in artificial intelligence. The United States is advancing its research with cutting-edge technology. China has made technological superiority a fundamental national priority. The European Union (EU) has introduced the world’s first comprehensive legal framework through its AI Act. Meanwhile, developing countries, including India, are adopting AI rapidly across sectors without the strong regulatory systems needed to manage the associated risks. This widening gap risks deepening global inequalities and could produce a chaotic patchwork of regulations that technology companies exploit at the expense of the weakest players.

The absence of a coordinated approach to AI governance is already causing serious damage. As each country develops its own separate rules, innovation is suppressed, and problems that are global by nature become nearly impossible to address. A unified strategy is needed, and needed now.

The good news is that the world does not have to start from nothing. International organisations such as the United Nations (UN), the Group of Twenty (G20), and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) have already laid the groundwork for talks on transparency, accountability, data protection, and human rights. A binding international agreement could be reached if world leaders are willing to make use of these organisations. Good governance need not stifle innovation; on the contrary, it can help build the public confidence AI needs to develop responsibly.

A global framework, however, will work only if it accounts for the views of developing countries. In the past, international technology policy has too often been shaped by rich nations, disregarding the realities of low- and middle-income countries. If AI is to be a force for global good, broad and inclusive participation is essential. Only then can AI contribute to sustainable development, improve access to quality education and healthcare, strengthen disaster response, and promote economic growth without worsening the digital divide.

Three specific policy measures are needed to move from rhetoric to reality.

First, governments should set global minimum standards for the highest-risk applications of AI, particularly in healthcare, electoral processes, law enforcement, and military use, since in these areas an error or a malicious act can cost human lives or damage democracy itself.

Second, the international community should invest heavily in AI education, digital infrastructure, and regulatory capacity in developing countries. Closing the digital divide is not an act of charity; it is a strategic necessity for global stability and security.

Third, technology companies should adopt radical transparency. They should clearly account for how they train, test, and manage their most powerful AI systems. This need not compromise their trade secrets, but the public cannot be kept in the dark about systems that increasingly govern people’s lives and shape their futures.

The future of AI will not be decided in Silicon Valley, Beijing, or Brussels alone; it will depend on the decisions governments take today. Should the rules stay fragmented, the result will be heightened global tensions and a severe decline in public trust. But cooperation could protect democratic values, safeguard human rights, and ensure that AI remains a tool that serves humanity rather than a source of inequality and instability.

This is a vital moment for India. As a leading country of the Global South with a flourishing digital public infrastructure — including Aadhaar and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) — India should be at the negotiating table, not on the periphery. Given its rapidly growing technology sector, large population, and upcoming elections, India is a prime target for AI-driven manipulation. It cannot afford to rely on the United States or the EU to set the rules on its behalf; India has to be a maker of rules, not merely a receiver of them.

There is only a short window in which to put safeguards in place before AI outgrows the scope of existing legal systems. Policymakers must act immediately to create guidelines that are fair, transparent, and ethical—guidelines that balance progress with responsibility.

Addressing these issues is not merely the responsibility of bureaucrats and the prime minister. As citizens and voters, Indians have the right to know where their political parties stand. Will they pledge to campaign for a binding global AI treaty at the UN? Will they invest in digital literacy for India’s rural areas? Will they hold Big Tech answerable for the algorithms increasingly shaping people’s lives? Silence on these questions can no longer be an option.

The choices Indian voters make in the coming months will affect not only the future of artificial intelligence but also that of global cooperation and democracy itself. When the history of this age is written, it should show that societies chose to act together before it was too late.