AI Technology Is Universal, But Economic Gains Will Favor Few Countries

Artificial intelligence (AI) is often seen as the most egalitarian technology in history, with powerful models accessible globally to programmers and startups at similar costs. This availability suggests smaller countries could leapfrog decades of development and compete equally with larger economies. However, the paradox of this decade is that wider access to AI technology may actually increase economic inequality. Historical patterns show that when technology becomes widespread, its value shifts away from the technology itself toward the surrounding ecosystem, skilled human capital, adaptive organizations, capital markets, and enabling regulation.

Examples from past technologies illustrate this trend: electricity was universally available, yet only a few countries built global industries around it; the internet was open to all, but most value concentrated in a handful of nations and companies. AI will follow the same path, where the advantage lies in complementary infrastructure rather than the AI models alone. Within economies, this dynamic means that those who build new AI-driven work models will see productivity gains, while those who merely purchase AI tools will find value flowing outward to owners of models, computing power, and expertise.

For Israel, this presents both opportunity and challenge. The country boasts world-class innovation infrastructure, including human capital, research, entrepreneurship, and venture capital. Yet, Israel’s small size and slow AI adoption in commerce, industry, services, and the public sector limit productivity growth. Israeli workers produce about 25% less per hour than their American counterparts. Without broader AI integration, internal economic disparities will deepen between sectors that harness AI and those that do not.

The authors describe their own firm’s experience restructuring work around AI agents, shifting routine tasks to machines and freeing experts to focus on judgment, strategy, creativity, and accountability. This transformation exemplifies how combining accessible technology with strong infrastructure creates competitive advantage.

Looking ahead, the AI debate is fundamentally about productivity, wages, cost of living, and Israel’s global economic position. The key question for the next decade is how to make the entire economy operate like a high-tech company. Market forces alone will not suffice, as they prioritize immediate returns over national strength. The authors call for a national productivity plan with measurable goals, including halving the productivity gap with the U.S. within ten years, expanding computing and data infrastructure, regulatory frameworks encouraging experimentation, incentives for AI adoption across sectors, and sustained investment in human capital, the only irreplaceable component.

Ultimately, AI models and computing power will be universally accessible, but economic victory will depend on who builds an economy capable of fully leveraging them. The technology will belong to everyone, but the benefits will not.