Databases are Power: Geopolitics of AI Health and the Fate of the Global South
DeepRare is being hailed as a major breakthrough in the diagnosis of rare diseases. But beyond the clinical excitement, it signals a profound structural shift in the global health technology order. Will the Global South engage on its own negotiated terms, or continue to inherit terms dictated by others? In this latest piece, Bobby Purba unpacks the tension between the democratization of healthcare and the hidden geopolitics of data infrastructure. By exploring powerful historical precedents—from the Havasupai tribe case to the global expansion of BGI Group—we examine why adopting advanced AI platforms without strict, upfront governance simply replicates old patterns of data extraction. It is time for Global South nations to move past the paradox of access and actively assert a health data diplomacy agenda.
