FASTER ADOPTION OF A.I. SEEN IN DEVELOPING ECONOMIES IN ASIA
Mainland, India and SE Asia have a 30% bigger share of users of the new tech than advanced peers
Developing economies in Asia are putting generative artificial intelligence (AI) to use at a greater pace than their more advanced peers, according to a recent study by Deloitte.
The mainland, India and Southeast Asia have a 30 per cent bigger share of generative AI users compared with Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
Employees from developing economies are also embracing AI with more enthusiasm, reflecting populations that have a greater percentage of “digitally native” people, according to the report.
The study, undertaken in February and March by Deloitte Access Economics, surveyed almost 3,000 university students and about 9,000 employees across 13 locations in the continent.
Though the rapid adoption of AI would not directly eliminate jobs, the impact would be felt by businesses that failed to adapt, warned Chris Lewin, AI and data capability leader at Deloitte Asia-Pacific.
“Their employees, and in particular talent new to the workforce, will be drawn to rival businesses offering AI applications that are capable of redrawing the future of modern work,” he said.
AI language models were particularly useful in Asia-Pacific because it was one of the most linguistically diverse areas in the world, with more than 3,000 documented languages, said Kho Wei Any, senior manager of cognitive strategy and growth innovation at Deloitte Southeast Asia.
The study said CEOs and senior leaders must not only think about incorporating generative AI into their businesses to become more efficient, but also rethink processes to ensure they could adapt with the AI boom rather than get disrupted by it.
“Generative AI is being increasingly used to translate text or speech, helping to break down language barriers and connect people and businesses across the globe,” it said.
Using generative AI saved each user almost a day per week and freed up time to learn new skills, the study found.
However, just because an individual employee is more likely to use generative AI or is using it more frequently does not mean they are getting the most out of the technology.
Only half of employees surveyed believed they were fully leveraging the potential of generative AI. Taking action to increase their understanding of AI, such as by researching and experimenting with applications, meant users were more likely to feel they were optimising their use of the technology at work.
The finance, information and communications technology, media, professional services and education industries in AsiaPacific are likely to see significant
Employees … will be drawn to rival businesses offering AI applications
CHRIS LEWIN, A.I. AND DATA CAPABILITY LEADER, DELOITTE ASIA-PACIFIC