Opinions28-07-2026Bridging digital divides: China’s vision for global AI cooperation and its promise for the Kurdistan Region of IraqAcross the global landscape, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transitioning from a technical novelty into the foundational infrastructure of the modern economy. In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), this transformation is already taking root. From optimizing urban grid management and public sector operations to improving water distribution, healthcare diagnostics, and agricultural monitoring, local institutions and young entrepreneurs across Erbil, Sulaimani, and Duhok are eager to leverage digital solutions to solve pressing socio-economic challenges. However, developing and emerging regions face distinct headwinds: structural gaps in high-performance computing, limited access to localized open-source language models, and shortages in specialized technical capacity. It is against this backdrop that China’s global AI initiatives offer a timely, practical, and inclusive roadmap for the Global South.