Generative AI (Gen AI) has reached 243 million people in Southeast Asia in just under three years, according to the 11th e-Conomy SEA report from Google, Temasek and Bain & Company. That’s 58% of the working population in six countries – namely the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – home to 619 million people.
The internet took more than 10 years to reach a similar share. The report puts that down to AI being available with free tiers and minimal sign-up required.
Consumers, not companies, account for about 60% of the region’s AI use, measured in tokens. About 70% of their use goes to work and study: drafting, editing, research, analysis and coding, much of it by freelancers, content creators and employees on personal accounts.
Only in Singapore and Malaysia do company workloads make up roughly 45% to 60% of AI use. In Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, consumers account for about 80% of it.
Per person, Southeast Asians use about 10% as much AI as Americans. Only 1% to 2% of people in the six countries pay for gen AI, against 3% of US households.
AI already shows up in how people shop. Some 69% of consumers compare products with it, and 19% of online shopping journeys start in a standalone AI app.
Three in four AI users would let a reliable agent find the best price and buy a product for them. In the Philippines, where a House bill would make you answer for what your AI agent does, the figure is 74%. Strong privacy safeguards would make 44% more willing, clear information on what the AI can and can’t do 36%, and a way to undo its actions 30%.
The Philippines trails the region on adoption, at 53%, the lowest of the six, as the table below shows. Filipinos’ Gemini prompts for customer-support content, though, run nearly three times the regional average.
| Country | Internet users | Generative AI users | Consumer tokens per generative AI user |
|---|---|---|---|
| Singapore | 97% | 70% | 90M |
| Malaysia | 99% | 68% | 18M |
| Vietnam | 87% | 65% | 14M |
| Thailand | 95% | 63% | 15M |
| Indonesia | 81% | 54% | 13M |
| Philippines | 70% | 53% | 15M |
Southeast Asia’s digital economy, counted across 10 countries, is set to grow 17% this year to $368 billion (about Php 23.2 trillion) in gross merchandise value, up from $315 billion. This number is expected to balloon up to $620 billion by 2030, according to the report.
If you’re one of the 243 million gen AI users out here in Southeast Asia, you might agree about its broad use for mostly work and study. Strangely, use for art and entertainment didn’t seem to feature as much. You can learn more through the source link below.
