However, if we steer this toward assistive intelligence, we can narrow the divide. We can run open, Civic AI trained on local languages and local cultures. Japan and Taiwan are doing this—Taiwan with the Trustworthy AI Dialogue Engine (TAIDE)—to ensure digital competence is distributed horizontally, like a school of fish. This empowers smaller nations to build their civic capability, turning technology into a ladder for equity rather than a fence of exclusion.