Sophie Lythreatis joined BDFI as a Tech Ethicist, with an interest in ensuring that technology is developed inclusively-a vital step toward bridging the digital divide.
When we talk about technology today, it’s easy to get caught up in the dazzle. A kid codes their own video game after school. A chef livestreams cooking lessons with a phone propped on a stack of cookbooks. Someone writes the first draft of their novel using voice-to-text on their morning commute.
These moments feel like magic, and in many ways, they are.
But there’s a quieter story running beneath all the innovation. One that rarely trends but affects millions every day: the digital divide.
Let’s zoom out. The digital divide isn’t just about who owns the latest phone or has ultrafast broadband. Access alone doesn’t tell the full story. The digital divide is layered. It’s about access, yes—but also about digital skills and the ability to benefit meaningfully from being online. These are the three levels of the digital divide. It’s the gap between those who can effortlessly navigate the digital world and those who are excluded from it in ways both visible and invisible.
It’s someone unable to complete an online job application because the layout is confusing. It’s a parent skipping a virtual school meeting because video calls feel intimidating. It’s an elderly person who has a tablet but no idea how to use it—and no one to teach them.
This isn’t just a problem “out there.” It’s right here. In the UK, many families still rely on pay-as-you-go data, rationing their internet like electricity. Others share a single device between multiple family members, juggling schoolwork, job searches, and basic admin. And often, even when access exists, confidence doesn’t.
Globally, over 2.6 billion people remain offline—not by choice, but by circumstance.
Why it matters now more than ever? COVID-19 cast a harsh spotlight on the digital divide. Remote work, online schooling, and digital healthcare became essential—but they assumed digital access as a baseline. For many, that baseline didn’t exist.
Students fell behind—not for lack of effort, but because lessons moved to a platform they couldn’t reach. GP appointments went online, but those unfamiliar with video consultations were left struggling. Workers without devices or digital skills were cut off from opportunities. And for some, digital exclusion meant social exclusion too.
We’re now hurtling toward an AI-powered future—but without intervention, we risk deepening the divide. AI adds a fourth level to the digital divide. It’s not just about using AI tools—it’s about understanding them, shaping them, and benefiting from them.
Who gets to co-create with AI? Who understands how these systems work? Who has the power to question them? If entire communities are excluded from this wave of digital development, their perspectives, needs, and rights may be left out—or worse, misrepresented.
The digital divide is not a tech problem. It’s a human one. And solving it means recognising that digital inclusion is not just a nice-to-have—it’s foundational to participation in modern life.
So as we celebrate the next big innovation, let’s also ask: Who’s being left behind?
Because a truly connected world doesn’t just innovate. It includes.
