That curiosity is turning into measurable gains. About 75% of consumers say that AI tools, such as chatbots, translators, and image search, have made their daily tasks easier, while 50% say these tools help them make decisions faster. Among investors, 86% report cost savings and 71% report higher revenue growth in portfolio companies using AI.
Southeast Asia's digital economy has entered a new phase. According to the latest e-Conomy SEA 2025 report by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company, the region's online economy is set to exceed US$300 billion ($390.8 billion) in gross merchandise value (GMV) this year, over seven times larger than in 2016. The next leap forward hinges on artificial intelligence (AI) and the infrastructure to support it.
The report notes that Southeast Asia is now the world's most "AI-curious" region, with search interest three times the global average. Five Asean markets – namely Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore – rank among the top 20 worldwide for engagement with multimodal AI tools.
