The exponential growth of AI in Southeast Asia has remarkably impacted the region, improving innovation, productivity, efficiency, data analysis, and more. According to Statista Research, the artificial intelligence market in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will reach USD 6.72 billion in 2024 and grow by 28.53% until 2030.
Despite these developments, is the region overly dependent on foreign AI technology or is there another reason it is not innovating as many high-level tech solutions from within?
ASEAN companies use AI tools for personalised product recommendations, healthcare prediction models, fraud detection, and user support through chatbots. Furthermore, they obtain updates on social media through real-time monitoring, conduct analytics and generate reports, and engage customers through automated Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software.
Local tech initiatives
The region's local AI innovations and initiatives demonstrate its potential to surpass other parts of the world. For instance, Singapore's Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) said the country was launching the National Multimodal LLM Programme (NMLP) to enhance the nation's artificial intelligence research and innovation. It will accomplish this by partnering with AI Singapore (AISG) and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), building skilled talent, and fostering a thriving industry.
AISG has several programmes to boost the ecosystem, focusing on research, nurturing local experts, ensuring governance, ethics, and accountability, and providing educational resources. Additionally, innovative products and widespread industry adoption will occur. For instance, Generative artificial intelligence companies like conversational platform Kata.ai and automation solution SparkAI are making a difference.
Thailand's National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (Nectec) partnered with three AI groups to launch the OpenThaiGPT project, a GenAI tool based on the local language, in April 2023, about 18 months after the US's OpenAI released ChatGPT.
Finally, in Indonesia, the Jakarta Education Office set up a digital literacy training session for teachers and principals to upskill for artificial intelligence. It could help the teachers be ready to train students better.
Impact of foreign AI technologies on Southeast Asia
More established tech-innovating countries like the USA have significantly impacted the world, with solutions like OpenAI changing how so much operates. Foreign technologies like MidJourney and Dall-E2 show Southeast Asia lags in setting world trends.
Nvidia Corporation, a world leader in artificial intelligence computing, has optimised large language models (LLMs) and is hosting regional ones like SeaLLM and SEA-LION (Southeast Asian Languages In One Network). Alibaba designed the SeaLLM model to be more inclusive (especially during chatbot interactions) by better grasping languages and customs in ASEAN.
SEA-LION LLM represents linguistic and cultural diversity by handling many regional languages. This ability can help with text generation, translation services, and customer support chatbots, among other things.
The adoption of foreign-developed AI in Southeast Asia can also benefit the ecosystem. It provides cost-effective solutions that do not require local startups to pay for expensive research and development (R&D). Moreover, artificial intelligence from abroad contains advanced capabilities. It is faster to deploy because it will likely be built for seamless integration.
These benefits can accelerate the adoption and application of AI in the region, contributing to its growth and development.
Potential risks of relying on foreign AI technology
Relying heavily on technology from abroad is detrimental to ASEAN. Implementation may lead to higher costs, expose the region to digital insecurity, and encourage a lack of innovation. The tech remains vulnerable to discriminatory actions, especially if programmed abroad, and requires the right resources and significant time that may not be available.
Furthermore, it leads to economic dependency, harms critical infrastructure, and can show a failure to grasp local nuances, all risks that need careful consideration.
Anything related to artificial intelligence will require enough data storage. To protect against environmental damage, new data centres must focus on sustainability, reducing pollution, eliminating waste, and automating energy regulation.
Future of AI in Southeast Asia
New technologies must be nurtured and tailored to their respective countries to have an impact. Other emerging technologies, like blockchain and augmented reality, can also push the use of artificial intelligence in ASEAN forward. Collaborating with other regions can bring customised AI solutions faster to everyone. Southeast Asia can become a global leader in AI innovation and application with the right strategies and investments..
Regional governments must address data insecurity, copyright infringements, slow adoption, and limited tech education to ensure innovation and competitiveness. Regulations must also be in place to enhance the technology's governance, ethics and ecosystem growth.
AI in Southeast Asia thrives due to increased investments, with countries like Thailand and Singapore integrating it into various industries. The region requires better service for its diverse markets, so there is potential for a more significant impact. The sector in ASEAN is also young compared to other regions, meaning there is more room for innovation and growth.
Ultimately, stakeholders must strike a balance between relying on foreign AI technology and local innovations to prevent the collapse and dependency of their nations.
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