AI is often framed as an opportunity in business while remaining a ‘threat’ socially. The fear of replacement blurs our outlook on the potential positive social impact AI solutions can offer.

As spoken by Doreen Bogdan-Martin from the International Telecommunication Union, we are the AI generation. Thus, we should promote and identify AI solutions that are here to solve real global challenges and support both social and environmental sustainability.

AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva

AI for Good is a flagship initiative of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialized agency of the United Nations. It operates in collaboration with over 40 UN partners and numerous governments, NGOs, academia, and industry stakeholders. The 2025 Global Summit in Geneva attracted not only AI tech enthusiasts but also policymakers, global decision-making bodies, and activists working for the betterment of the lives of underprivileged communities and the condition of our planet’s health.

The event’s overarching objective was to position AI as a trustworthy, inclusive, and powerful enabler across governance, standards, innovation, skills, health, art, space, quantum tech, and humanitarian aid—anchoring its role in sustainable development and global cooperation.

Even though the summit aimed to promote AI as an opportunity, throughout the conference, security issues have been discussed on many levels. On the AI Governance Day (10th of July), high-level sessions on safety, trust, regulatory frameworks, international coordination, and national strategies were held. The event established rapport between crucial international organizations in the industry, advancing topics such as global interoperability, watermarking, deepfake detections, telecom network standards, and content authenticity. Agentic AI was talked about through the lenses of risk management, too.

A crucial pillar of the event was built on the discussions about public-private partnerships (PPP) within the AI field. The successful AI integration across sectors like healthcare, infrastructure, agriculture, and public services was a recurring theme.

These discussions were further stimulated by the launch of UNICC AI Hub – a collaborative UN-wide initiative to scale AI adoption across agencies.

Another pillar of the summit was education and capacity building. With a focus on youth, hundreds of specialists gave lectures and facilitated workshops on, i.e., robotics challenges, accessible AI, or coding.

Art, education, health, equality, and disaster response…

...are just a few of the categories of new AI-driven solutions spotlighted by the programme. “Innovation can and should be ethical and inclusive”, we heard during the event. It can also be beautiful, as proven by the artistic angle of the summit. The possibility of exploring AI-supported art pieces varied from music to mini short film festivals.

The very novelty of the summit lied in its holistic approach, reaching as far as abstract yet important spheres of cultural, spiritual, and societal values, as well as emotional sovereignty and humanism.

As ethical and inclusive innovation were at the core, alongside workshops on equality, circular fashion, or protecting wildlife, a lot of emphasis was put on the potential of AI in healthcare. Neurorehabilitation and brain–computer demos were showcased, including wireless brain-computer interfaces, exoskeletons, and brain wave data sharing models that are built to support people with neurological disabilities.

The attendees could explore technology live, through exploring live demos and exhibits of autonomous agents, drones, quantum tech, Xenobots, self-driving cars, solar aquatic robots, or even smart toilets.

Startups that stirred the pot

Global AI for Good Summit also attracted a lot of entrepreneurs, as its educational and innovation-driving missions could not materialize better than through supporting real solutions designed by real people. The startup accelerator and so-called Innovation Factory are among the programs that support recognition of the startups that create the most impressive solutions, impact-wise.

The AI for Good Impact Awards, Innovation Factory Awards, and Youth Robotics Awards were long-awaited ceremonies concluded at the summit. The contests honoured the best AI solutions across categories spanning social, environmental, and economic sustainability.

Recognizing those hands-on examples of implementing AI skillfully and for good are the most uplifting moments of the event, fuelling us with hope and inspiration! Let’s take a look at this year’s winners.

Among the Innovation Factory’s finalists this year, we saw

RevolutionAIze – an app designed for low-resource settings, capturing geo-tagged, tamper-proof data that supports early detection of malnutrition and enables better nutrition tracking among children.

Predictheon – is a tool originally developed by anesthesiologists, engineers, and data scientists to predict risks during surgical operations. The platform uses AI-powered models to forecast critical changes during procedures, which helps prevent complications and improve outcomes.

Glidance – is a platform redefining mobility for people with sight loss through Glide, the world’s first autonomous guidance robot. Powered by robotics and AI, Glide intuitively leads users to their destination, offering a level of independence and confidence unmatched by traditional aids. It was developed by a founder who lost his sight in his early 20s and aims to become a revolution in the quality of life of the blind.

The winner’s title went to MamaMate developed by Ele-vate – a startup that some of you may have already heard of. It has now been globally recognized for its impact on maternal health in underserved regions.

“Built specifically for low-resource environments, MamaMate works offline, charges via solar or USB, and uses AI-powered prompts to track baby care activities, offer culturally relevant nutrition tips, monitor maternal wellbeing, and connect mothers through anonymous peer messages, all in local languages and in ways that are accessible to women with low literacy. The Ele-vate Africa team created this device because they understood what it felt like to be invisible in systems that are supposed to care for you. Yvonne said, “MamaMate is a reminder that AI can be gentle. It can be kind. It can stand beside you when no one else does.” (Source: AI for Good Newsletter)

AI for Good Impact Awards titles worth taking a look at

The AI for People Award was presented to CareNX Innovations, a healthcare technology company committed to lowering maternal and infant death rates through the application of AI.

WorldFish received the AI for Planet Award. This global research organization focuses on developing resilient aquatic food systems to combat hunger, poverty, and malnutrition across regions in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. Leveraging AI, WorldFish created Smart-Catch, a tool that employs on-device recognition of fish species to simplify catch reporting. This significantly reduces the need for manual data entry while enhancing the accuracy of the information collected.

The AI for Prosperity Award was awarded to Farmer.Chat, an AI-driven platform tailored to assist small-scale farmers, particularly women, who often face poverty, climate challenges, and limited access to resources. The platform offers practical, localized farming advice in user-friendly formats like voice, images, text, and video, designed to be accessible in low-literacy and low-connectivity environments.

The Global AI for Good Summit highlighted the transformative potential of AI. At ExpertHub, we aim to observe and support this potential by following the work of remarkable, purpose-driven entrepreneurs who create real-world impact. We encourage them to join our network and continue making a better change.