The article provides insight into how developments in artificial intelligence (AI) affect the balance of power in the digital world order. This study reveals the global trends in the political and regulatory support for the development and implementation of AI, as well as peculiarities of government strategies in this area.The United States of America and China have been proven to be the most powerful actors in the international system in using AI. Thanks to investments, regulatory and institutional support and the introduction of AI technologies in the foreign policy’s domain, these two states form a duopoly of the digital world order. A significant advantage of the United States and China in promoting artificial intelligence is the presence of transnational tech giants such as Google and Tencent, etc.
It is noted that European countries, primarily those that are part of the EU, are united by an ethical-oriented approach to the production and implementation of AI technologies. However, they are inferior to the United States and China in investment and infrastructure support for the development of artificial intelligence technologies.
Our findings indicate that access to data is a challenge for states claiming technological dominance in the international system. In this aspect, the advantage is on the side of China. The latter not only has full-scale access to the personal data of its citizens, but is also actively developing tools for collecting data in other states, in particular by implementing the «Digital Silk Road» strategy.
The paper highlights the correlations between the introduction of new technologies and the reconfiguration of the geopolitical balance of forces in the historical retrospective. Our analysis confirms that a feature of the current stage of technological development is that the primacy in the implementation of AI technologies provides an advantage only in the short term.
Unlike previous technological revolutions, the current one is characterized by the rapidity of adaptation and the comprehensive implementation of AI, and thus provides an opportunity for any actor in international relations, public or private to make systemic impact, which can dramatically change the geopolitical balance of power on the international stage.
