A new report from GSMA Intelligence, produced in collaboration with Huawei, finds that digital literacy—not network coverage—is the primary obstacle preventing 3.1 billion people from using mobile internet. The report, titled "Bridging the Divide: Enhancing Digital Literacy in the AI Era," was released at UNESCO’s Digital Learning Week.
According to the research, 38% of the global population lives within mobile broadband coverage but remains offline due to a lack of digital skills, user trust, and AI literacy. Physical coverage now reaches 96% of people worldwide, yet the usage gap persists. Closing this capability gap could add approximately $3.5 trillion to global GDP by 2030, with more than 90% of those gains flowing to low- and middle-income countries.
Artificial intelligence presents both opportunities and challenges. AI-powered voice assistants and multimodal applications can help low-literacy users bypass text input, but they also raise security and critical-thinking requirements. The report warns that users must now understand data privacy and identify risks such as fraud and deepfakes. Citing World Bank statistics, it notes that GenAI literacy carries wage premiums of up to 36%, far exceeding returns for basic digital or traditional AI skills. Without targeted interventions, rapid AI adoption risks entrenching existing inequalities even in areas with full coverage.
The report highlights community-based delivery models, citing Huawei’s Skills on Wheels initiative and its solar-powered DigiTruck mobile classrooms as a field-tested example. These mobile units bring hardware, rural connectivity, and hands-on training—including AI literacy—to off-grid regions. Since 2019, Skills on Wheels projects have reached more than 130,000 people across 21 countries. A report by Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and Digital Economy shows that 79% of DigiTruck trainees surveyed passed on their new digital skills to family members and peers. A new DigiTruck program will launch in France this autumn, targeting low-income and underserved communities in the Île-de-France region.
To bridge the usage gap, the report urges policymakers, telecom operators, and technology vendors to focus on four priorities: treating practical AI awareness, online safety, and information verification as a baseline national qualification; adopting multilingual voice and conversational interfaces across public services; scaling up mobile learning units through cross-sector partnerships; and measuring performance by independent task completion and fraud resilience rather than trainee numbers.
"Digital literacy can no longer be defined by static thresholds," said Tim Hatt, head of research and consultancy at GSMA Intelligence. "Connectivity alone is insufficient—capabilities, system design and trust must evolve together. To capture this multi-trillion-dollar opportunity, stakeholders must integrate layered AI literacy directly into daily livelihoods through trusted community channels."
Gavin Allen, Executive Editor-in-Chief at Huawei, added, "Mobile classrooms have demonstrated immense value in helping underserved populations break through physical and psychological barriers to technology. We will continue working alongside local governments and industry partners to drive digital literacy, ensuring that no one is left behind as we transition into the AI economy."
The full report is available on the GSMA Intelligence research portal: https://www.gsmaintelligence.com/research/bridging-the-divide-enhancing-digital-literacy-in-the-ai-era.
