At the 2025 TECH7 Summit: Building Trust and Accelerating AI Adoption, one message cut through the global conversation on artificial intelligence: the future of economic competitiveness will be shaped less by who invents AI first and more by who adopts it most effectively.

That message was delivered by Nicole Foster of Amazon Web Services, a founding member of the AI Adoption Initiative (AIAI), on why AI adoption, not innovation alone, must now be the priority for governments and economies across the G7. While cutting-edge AI models matter, real economic impact comes from diffusion: getting AI into the hands of workers, businesses, and public institutions at scale.

From innovation to diffusion

History offers a powerful lesson. As highlighted in Professor Jeffrey Ding’s work, technological revolutions were won not by early inventors, but by countries that built the skills, institutions, and systems needed to deploy new technologies broadly. During the Second Industrial Revolution, it was the United States’ ability to apply machine tools across its economy that drove its rise.

The same pattern is emerging today. AI has moved from a niche technology accessible only to elite researchers to one that can now be used “out of the box” by millions of workers. The countries that succeed will be those that focus on workforce readiness, practical use cases, and infrastructure that enables adoption at scale.

This insight is central to the AI Adoption Initiative, which was launched earlier this year at the Paris AI Action Summit to connect policymakers, researchers, and industry leaders around one shared goal: accelerating responsible AI adoption to drive productivity and inclusive growth.

Cloud as the great enabler of AI adoption

Rather than interacting directly with raw computing infrastructure, most businesses and workers access AI through cloud-based tools and applications that abstract complexity and lower barriers to entry. This layered “AI stack” – from compute, to tooling, to applications – allows organizations to move quickly from experimentation to real-world deployment. Cloud has transformed AI from a technology only the largest firms could afford into a practical capability accessible to businesses of all sizes.

This democratization of AI is what makes today’s moment different and why adoption-focused policy and investment matter more than ever.

Why adoption is an economic imperative

The urgency is clear. G7 economies face slowing productivity growth and aging populations, placing unprecedented pressure on workers and public services. Research shows AI could boost productivity by more than 50 percent across many tasks, from writing and analysis to coding and operations.

Yet adoption remains uneven. Large firms and a handful of sectors are pulling ahead, while SMEs, manufacturers, and entire regions risk falling behind. Countries like India and are now among global leaders in AI adoption because they have focused relentlessly on skills, access, and practical deployment.

Policy levers that matter

There are several areas where governments can make a tangible difference:

• Expanding practical AI skills across the workforce, not just among researchers;
• Making AI tools accessible to SMEs;
• Leading by example through public sector AI adoption;
• Modernizing tax incentives to support applied AI development; and
• Creating trusted data frameworks that unlock AI in sensitive sectors like healthcare.

These are precisely the kinds of adoption-focused strategies the AI Adoption Initiative is working to advance across jurisdictions.

A shared G7 opportunity

There is a need for deeper G7 coordination, particularly around regulatory alignment and data governance. Fragmented approaches risk slowing adoption and delaying benefits, while common standards can accelerate responsible use and workforce readiness across borders. Productivity-enhancing technologies have historically explained much of the income gap between countries. AI presents a rare opportunity to reverse stagnation – but only if its benefits are widely shared.

Through the leadership of founding members like AWS, the AI Adoption Initiative is focused on turning this moment into action – bridging policy, infrastructure, and real-world use so that AI adoption delivers lasting economic and societal impact.

Join us

As AI adoption accelerates, dialogue between policymakers, innovators, and thought leaders is necessary. AIAI will continue to bring together voices from around the world to ensure AI becomes a tool for opportunity and growth.