The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Nigerian Polytechnic education has tremendous transformative potential and critical equity challenges. The aim of this study was to empirically explore the extent of digital equity in relation to student access to AI tools and explore the impact of legal awareness and institutional ethical responsibilities. The data were collected using the Quantitative, Cross-sectional survey design method with a sample size of 300 students from the population of 3500 students in the three categories of federal, state and private polytechnic of Osun State using stratified random sampling technique. Descriptive statistics and Multiple regression were used for the analyses. The results showed a moderate digital equity level (M=3.12 SD=0.86). Legal rights awareness (β=0.39, p< .001) and ethical responsibility (β=0.48, p< .001) significantly predicted digital equity, with ethical responsibility predicting digital equity more strongly (R²=0.61). Overall, the results point to the challenges faced by technical education institutions in Nigeria when it comes to equitable AI implementation, which go beyond mere technological availability and are rooted in legal understandings and ethical frameworks. We argue that adopting sustainable AI practices needs to be embedded in the policy, including the use of equity indicators, legal protection, and institutional ethical commitments, to avoid the exacerbation of current socio-digital inequalities.