Purpose – Recent development and democratization of digital technologies call for studying base-of-the-pyramid (BOP) consumers’ interactions with these technologies. This study aims to explore how BOP consumers interact with mobile information and communication technology (mICT) and improve their welfare. Design/methodology/approach – Following an extensive literature review, content analysis of the reviewed articles and reports was conducted to build this article’s conceptual foundation. Findings – This study has conceptualized five mechanisms in which mICT improves the lives of BOP customers through enhanced access and control of resources. In particular, the authors characterize a converging nature of mICT and related applications (social media, internet of things, artificial intelligence and sharing economy) as resources for social change. The authors find a striking contrast between BOP and affluent consumers regarding their motivations and barriers to adopting mICT-based applications. Implications to research, technology design and policymaking are discussed. Originality/value – The intersection of mICT and BOP is under-researched. With this paper, we tried to address this research gap. Further, this study has brought out several important research questions in each application, serving as a springboard for future researchers.