Power is no longer decided only by armies, trade routes, or natural resources. In today’s world, the most decisive force is artificial intelligence. In my view, nations that once fought for control of oil or shipping lanes are now racing to build algorithms, datasets, and digital ecosystems. AI has become the new currency of influence and the real language through which global power is being expressed.

Globalisation once promised to unite the world. It offered a vision where goods, ideas, and opportunities would flow freely across borders. But that dream collapsed into trade wars, broken supply chains, and rising nationalism. Instead of integration, we now see fragmentation. Yet, in an unexpected turn, AI is quietly stitching together new forms of cooperation. Where politicians struggle to find consensus, AI platforms create connections across geography, class, and ideology.

I believe this is why AI is becoming the real currency of power. A farmer in South Asia can use AI for better crop planning. A startup in Africa can build a healthcare solution for Europe. Refugees can learn, work, and reconnect through AI-driven apps. These examples show us something powerful: AI is building solidarity where politics and treaties have failed.

But let’s not be naive. AI also carries risks. The dominance of big tech companies, unequal access to data, and algorithmic bias could all turn this promise into a new kind of inequality. Rich nations have more compute power and more resources. If we don’t act collectively, AI will simply replicate the same imbalances that globalisation left behind.

This is where leadership matters. As CEOs, policymakers, and citizens, we must see AI as a shared responsibility. Instead of competing only for dominance, we should focus on building open frameworks, ethical standards, and inclusive platforms. Nations like India, Kenya, and Vietnam are already showing that AI can be developed locally, not just imported from Silicon Valley or Beijing. That is the path to real empowerment.

To me, the biggest shift is this: global influence is no longer decided in boardrooms or summits. It is decided in code repositories, innovation hubs, and collaborative platforms. AI is giving smaller nations and younger innovators a chance to shape the future. That is a more democratic form of power than we have seen in decades.

AI is now the language of power. It is how the world will compete, cooperate, and communicate in the 21st century. The question is not whether AI will define global influence. The question is: do we want that influence to remain in the hands of a few, or do we want it to become a collective force for good?

We missed the chance to make globalisation inclusive. We cannot afford to repeat that mistake with AI. This time, we must choose cooperation over division. Because in the end, the real power of AI is not in machines. It is in how we, as humans, decide to use it.

This opinion reflects the vision of Usman Aftab, reviewed by him, and writen by Esha Mehmood.