Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming the global economy, offering extraordinary opportunities for innovation, productivity and entrepreneurship. However, the revolution also poses risks, especially for young entrepreneurs.
The risks for young entrepreneurs
A recent report by the World Economic Forum projected that emerging technologies, including AI, could create 170 million new jobs globally by 2030 – but displace around 92 million. In unleashing this creative destruction, there is potential for such technologies to propel a new generation of young entrepreneurs to new heights – or to leave them struggling to keep up. A recent OECD report highlighted the gap that is already emerging in AI uptake, with large firms three times more likely to use AI than smaller businesses.
Dispersion of adoption rates across segments of total economy and business population (%), 2024 versus 2023
Note: The chart represents the dispersion of adoption rates in 2023 and 2024, and identifies the central tendency and variability firms. Boxes represent the middle range (50%) of rates, the top and bottom of the box mark the upper and lower quartiles (Q3) and Q1, i.e. the interquartile) and the line inside marks the median. Whiskers extend from the upper and lower quartiles to the minimum and maximum values within 1.5 times the interquartile range. Outliers are not represented.
Many young entrepreneurs running these small ventures have limited access to funding, training, or digital infrastructure. Young entrepreneurs from lower-income backgrounds, rural areas, or underrepresented groups also often face additional challenges in accessing reliable internet, affordable AI tools, and quality training. For such groups, even free or low-cost AI tools can remain out of reach – leaving them trailing in the wake of larger firms in terms of productivity, visibility, and competitiveness.
Getting on the front foot
Youth Business International (YBI)’s new policy paper outlines key actions to ensure the uptake of AI doesn’t exclude underserved young entrepreneurs and risk deepening existing divides into entrenched inequalities.
Building affordable digital infrastructure
A first priority is expanding affordable digital infrastructure. Universal broadband access remains uneven, with rural and low-income communities often facing high costs or unreliable service. By strengthening public–private partnerships, governments and industry can help subsidise rural fibre networks, introduce community Wi-Fi zones in low-income urban areas, and support low-cost data packages for young founders who rely on mobile devices to run their businesses. One example of such an initiative is the UK’s Shared Rural Network, a £1 billion public–private partnership that’s rolling out 4G to rural and remote parts of the UK, with the aim of covering at least 95% of the UK landmass.
Embedding inclusive AI education
Inclusive AI education is equally essential. Integrating AI literacy and responsible AI use into schools, vocational training, and entrepreneurship programmes will ensure young people understand both the opportunities and risks. This includes offering multilingual learning tools and embedding modules on ethics and bias in AI systems. One initiative already putting this into practice is the EU’s Digital Opportunity Traineeships, teaching young people to use practical AI tools while incorporating discussions about bias, ethics, and data protection.
Student preparedness for an AI-drive future
Targeted tech support
Young founders also need targeted entrepreneurial support, with incubators, accelerators, and youth enterprise networks incentivised to embed AI tools and mentorship directly into their programmes. This can include pairing entrepreneurs with both business advisors and data specialists to help them apply AI to real challenges such as automating inventory management, optimising delivery routes, or analysing customer feedback.
Recognising that many young entrepreneurs were struggling to keep pace with rapid technological change, YBI developed the AI Accelerator Curriculum — a pioneering initiative that equips young founders to integrate practical, low-cost AI tools into marketing, customer service, and business operations. Unlike traditional digital skills training, the AI Accelerator blends AI literacy with hands-on business system-building, ensuring entrepreneurs can translate new knowledge into immediate, sustainable actions.
Better regulation
Creating SME-friendly AI regulation will help ensure small firms can innovate without being overwhelmed by compliance burdens. A proportionate, risk-based approach, such as simplified reporting requirements for low-risk AI applications or government-funded “regulatory sandboxes” for experimentation, can encourage start-ups to test new ideas safely and cost-effectively. Under the EU’s forthcoming AI Act, all Member States must create at least one AI regulatory sandbox by August 2026, giving SMEs and start-ups free, simplified access to test AI tools in a supervised, low-risk environment. These sandboxes help young firms experiment while building compliance capabilities.
Global connections
Finally, fostering local and global collaboration is vital. Regional hubs for cross-border youth-to-youth learning can enable entrepreneurs to share practical insights, co-develop solutions, and access expertise that may be scarce in their own communities. For example, a virtual hub might connect young founders from Kenya, India, and Brazil to exchange AI-enabled business models tailored to resource-constrained environments.
A generation ready to lead
Around the world, young entrepreneurs are showing that AI can be a technological and entrepreneurial revolution. By automating the mundane, amplifying creativity, and expanding access to knowledge, AI gives young founders the tools to build more resilient, innovative, and growth-ready businesses.
But to make that promise a reality, governments, investors, and support organisations must act decisively to close the digital skills gap, democratise access to AI, and design policies that empower rather than exclude. With the right support today, AI can help unlock a future where every young entrepreneur has the tools and confidence to shape the economy of tomorrow.
Read YBI’s full policy paper Harnessing AI and Digital Solutions to Empower Young Entrepreneurs here. See the OECD’s The Missing Entrepreneurs 2023 Report: Policies for Inclusive Entrepreneurship and Self-Employment.
Wanda Brandt is Communications Manager at Youth Business International (YBI), the global leader in youth entrepreneurship. For over 25 years, YBI has combined global influence with local expertise to drive economic growth and job creation through supporting and scaling youth-led businesses globally.
In her role, Wanda works to position YBI as the leading voice for youth entrepreneurship. She contributes to the organisation’s thought leadership and policy communications, producing evidence-based insights to influence investment in youth entrepreneurship globally. She also amplifies the stories and impact of YBI’s global network and the young entrepreneurs it supports across the world.
Wanda previously worked in PR and marketing in the private sector and holds an MSc in International Relations from Cardiff University.