Internet connectivity is now more important than electricity was last century, says Alibaba’s Jack Ma
- The Alibaba executive chairman’s comment follows the release of a comprehensive UN report on ‘digital interdependence’
Connectivity to the internet could be more important in this era, compared with access to electricity in the past century, to build an inclusive digital economy and society, according to Jack Ma, co-founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group Holding.
“Today, if we are not connecting any country [or] if you don’t let your people connect to the internet, it’s worse than last century not letting them connect to electricity,” Ma said on Monday during a live-streamed panel discussion on digital cooperation with American philanthropist Melinda Gates and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres at UN headquarters in New York City.
“[Internet connectivity is] going to change a lot of things, [so] we should not leave people in the last century,” Ma said. “The digital period from now is just the beginning.”
The discussion was held to mark the release of “The Age of Digital Interdependence”, a report of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation. Ma and Gates serve as co-chairs of this panel.
The report calls for reinvigorating multilateral cooperation among governments so that digital technologies can be used to help improve life for everyone. That would be complemented by cooperation with a diverse spectrum of other stakeholders, such as civil society, technologists, academics and the private sector, according to the report.