Latin America Is Leading in AI Use. So Why Is It Lagging in Adoption?

In March 2025, Carlos from São Paulo logged into ChatGPT and turned a selfie into a lifelike action figure—complete with Santos FC jersey, soccer ball, and drum set. He wasn’t alone. In days, over 130 million users generated 700 million AI images. Brazil shot up to become ChatGPT’s third-largest market, with public trust in AI reaching 84%, far above the global average. Latin Americans are clearly buzzing about AI.

But while the streets are alive with experimentation, the boardrooms remain quiet. Across Latin America, corporate and political leaders are hesitating—intrigued by AI’s promise but paralyzed by its risks. The result? A widening gap between grassroots enthusiasm and institutional buy-in. And that disconnect could determine the region’s future in the AI era.

Fear at the Top

Why the hesitation? In a word: fear.

Bankers worry about data breaches, legal exposure, and shaky regulations. While global peers like JPMorgan are embedding AI into everything from fraud detection to loan processing, many Latin American banks relegate AI to innovation labs—safe from the core business. The result? Flashy pilots, press releases, and little actual change.

Doctors and lawyers are no less uneasy. Ask a radiologist if they use AI to interpret scans, and the answer often comes with pride: “No—I rely on my expertise.” Ask a lawyer about AI research tools, and you’ll hear warnings about fake citations and breaches of confidentiality. In May 2025, a senior judge in Britain issued a public rebuke after a lawyer submitted an AI-generated brief riddled with errors. The story spread fast through WhatsApp groups across Latin America’s legal networks —vindicating skeptics and chilling experimentation.

Some of these concerns are justified. But let’s not forget: human professionals make costly mistakes, too. Misdiagnoses, overlooked case law, botched contracts—these happen regularly, with or without machines. Properly deployed, AI can reduce such errors. A legal assistant trained on Latin American case law can cross-check citations or redline contracts at superhuman speed. A doctor in a rural clinic can get a second opinion in seconds. Used wisely, AI isn’t a threat to expertise—it’s a force multiplier.

The Jobs Debate: Apocalypse or Renaissance?

Then there’s the elephant in the room: jobs. Many executives fear that adopting AI will lead to mass layoffs, and no leader wants to spark unrest in countries already grappling with unemployment. So they stall.

Ironically, delay may trigger the very crisis they’re trying to avoid. Fall too far behind, and companies may resort to sudden, sweeping automation just to survive—laying off hundreds in a panic. By contrast, gradual integration allows time for retraining and adjustment. The choice isn’t between disruption and stability—it’s between controlled change and chaotic collapse.

A 2024 Inter-American Development Bank study estimated that 28% of jobs in Latin America could be affected by AI in the next year alone—roughly 84 million roles. Many of these are in information-heavy jobs like customer service, data entry, or junior accounting. And because women in Latin America are overrepresented in clerical roles, the impact could be deeply gendered.

But AI isn’t just a destroyer—it’s a creator, too. With the right support, small entrepreneurs could thrive. A solo graphic designer in Panama City, a one-person shop in Bogotá, a coder in Guadalajara—they can now operate at scale. With AI tools, a small team can analyze sales data, handle support chats, manage inventory, and run targeted marketing—all without the overhead of a traditional firm. This isn’t theory; it’s happening.

What’s needed is a skills revolution. Education systems must shift from static degrees to dynamic, lifelong learning. AI evolves fast—today’s “prompt engineering” tricks could be obsolete tomorrow. Latin American workers need training not just to use AI, but to think alongside it: designing, verifying, and adapting. That means breaking down silos, upgrading IT departments from support teams to strategy hubs, and making digital literacy core to every role—from the C-suite to the factory floor.

The High Cost of Doing Nothing

Of course, adopting AI isn’t free. Latin American companies often struggle with legacy systems, messy data, and outdated infrastructure. Clean data is fuel for good AI—and ours is often locked in dusty files or scattered across incompatible servers.

And yes, AI can fail—sometimes spectacularly. It can hallucinate. It can get things wrong. The reputational risk of a bot gone rogue is real, especially in low-trust environments. That’s why insurers are now offering “AI failure” policies at Lloyd’s of London—a science fiction concept just years ago.

But here’s the bottom line: waiting for AI to become perfectly safe and plug-and-play isn’t caution. It’s surrender. Every major technological shift—from railways to the internet—came with risk. The pioneers who managed it wisely reshaped their industries. The laggards faded. If Latin America delays, the world will move on without it—faster than we think. Doing nothing is the most expensive option.

From Policy Patchwork to Vision

If fear explains the hesitation, weak policy locks it in. While the EU, China, and the U.S. race to set the rules, Latin America lags behind.

Brazil is debating an EU-style risk-based AI law. Chile and Argentina have published national strategies—on paper. Mexico’s efforts stalled amid political turnover. The result is a patchwork of pilot policies, vulnerable to being tossed out with each new administration.

What’s missing isn’t regulation—it’s ambition. Instead of banning bad AI uses piecemeal, we need a proactive vision: how can AI help solve Latin America’s chronic challenges—corruption, inequality, stagnant productivity? And what incentives or safeguards will make that vision real?

Chile offers a glimpse of what’s possible. It invested early in digital infrastructure and built an AI roadmap that survived political change. Today, Chile leads Latin America in AI readiness. A 2024 study found that simply deploying generative AI across 100 common occupations could boost its GDP by 1.2%—an extra $3.4 billion annually. That’s not just theory. It’s policy paying off.

Education: The Real Battleground

If there’s one place AI could be a game-changer, it’s education. Latin America’s schools are underfunded, uneven, and still reeling from the pandemic. AI could help us leapfrog from stagnation to innovation.

Picture a classroom in Guatemala’s highlands: one teacher, 40 kids, few resources, and no internet. Now add a battery-powered AI tutor that works offline, speaks the local language, and adapts to each student’s level. This is not science fiction. In a Nigerian pilot, students gained nearly two years of learning in just six weeks using AI apps. They didn’t become geniuses—they finally got instruction that met them where they were.

But AI won’t save us if our habits don’t change. If private schools zoom ahead with AI tools while public ones lag, the education gap will widen. Step one: empower teachers, don’t replace them. Step two: ditch rote memorization and teach creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking—skills machines can’t replicate.

Between Two Giants: The Geopolitics of AI

No discussion of Latin America’s AI future is complete without zooming out to the global chessboard. The region is being pulled into the center of the U.S.-China rivalry. While we’re not building the foundational models, we sit atop critical inputs—lithium, rare earths, and other minerals essential to the AI economy. China has moved quickly to secure mining rights, fund infrastructure, and embed itself in Latin America’s digital networks. The result? We risk remaining resource exporters and technology importers—digging the gold while others mint the coins.

The U.S. is now reengaging—first under Biden’s “friend-shoring” initiative, and now with the Trump administration signaling a more business-driven, America First approach. If this leads U.S. AI firms to expand operations into Latin America—through data centers, chip plants, or research hubs—the upside could be significant. But nothing will happen by default. Latin America must present itself as an attractive partner: politically stable, with clear incentives and a skilled, tech-ready workforce. That brings the focus back to education and infrastructure. No one will build a chip fab or an AI lab in a country with unreliable power or too few trained engineers. Geopolitics is forcing us to do our domestic homework—and fast.

While it may seem distant from the daily grind of AI adoption, geopolitics is deeply intertwined with our prospects. A startup’s survival may hinge on whether it can access the latest chips—determined by export rules set in Washington, Beijing, or Brussels. The affordability of AI tools depends on trade policies our governments help shape—or ignore. And our ability to produce, not just consume, AI depends on forging smart partnerships to build research centers, training programs, and data infrastructure on our own soil.

Seizing the AI Moment

Latin America’s AI moment is here—but moments don’t last. The region ranks among the world’s most active users. Startups are building tools for agriculture, finance, and education. Citizens are ready to run. But too many leaders are still walking.

Embracing AI doesn’t mean handing over the reins. I wrote this op-ed—not a large language model. Left alone, AI would simply regurgitate what’s already been said. But as a collaborator, it helped research and sharpen the work. That’s the promise: humans and AI, working together—each amplifying the other’s strengths.

Latin America has what it takes: creativity, grit, and talent. The tools are here. The enthusiasm is real. What we lack isn’t capacity—it’s conviction. And when caution stretches into inertia, it stops being prudence and starts becoming a recipe for irrelevance.This is a window, not a guarantee. And it’s closing fast. Let’s not miss it.