Colombia Ranks Fourth in Latin American Artificial Intelligence Index

The Latin American Artificial Intelligence Index (ILIA) ranks Colombia as the fourth most prepared country for artificial intelligence adoption. This places Colombia ahead of Mexico, which ranks eighth. The ILIA, a joint effort by Chile's National Center for Artificial Intelligence and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, measures the level of preparedness, development, and governance of AI in 20 countries across the region.

Countries are classified into three categories: pioneers, adopters, and explorers. Pioneers, such as Chile, Brazil, and Uruguay, show high and relatively consolidated performance in AI infrastructure, talent, research, innovation, and governance. Adopters, like Colombia, have relevant capabilities but face gaps that limit broader AI deployment.

The third category, explorers, includes countries at an early stage of development facing challenges in infrastructure, research, adoption, or governance. The report highlights that mobile network and 5G coverage are crucial for AI applications, with Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Colombia, and Peru leading in coverage.

In terms of AI expert training, the region scores an average of 12.4 points out of 100, with Brazil, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Colombia, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, and Chile performing above the regional average. Regional cooperation is deemed strategically valuable for AI sovereignty, as it enables decision-making capacity and preserves alternatives in a highly interdependent tech environment.

While Latin America and the Caribbean show parity in connectivity with outside countries, the region lags significantly in computing capacity, with Brazil accounting for a significant share of GPU capacity.