Latest news with #EastTechWest
CNBC
14-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
How Southeast Asia is building AI that works for the region
Jon Fortt presents highlights from East Tech West conference in Bangkok, Thailand where industry leaders discussed the democratisation of AI and how the race for dominance could reshape global power dynamics.
CNBC
08-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Southeast Asia needn't take sides in US-China tech rivalry. It can learn from both, experts say
As China and the U.S. compete in artificial intelligence, Southeast Asia should draw from the best of both countries while building its own technologies, panelists said at CNBC's East Tech West 2025 conference on June 27 in Bangkok, Thailand. Julian Gorman, head of Asia-Pacific at mobile network trade organization GSMA, said it would be a negative development if Southeast Asia was forced to pick a side. "Southeast Asia is very dependent on both economies, both China and America. I think it's pretty hard to consider that they would go one way or the other," Gorman said. "It's very important that we continue to focus on not fragmenting the technology, standardizing it, and working so that technology transcends geopolitics and ultimately is used for good," he added. The spread of U.S. and Chinese AI companies into new global markets has been a big trend this year as both Beijing and Washington seek more global influence in advanced technologies. According to George Chen, managing director and co-chair of digital practice for The Asia Group, Southeast Asia had initially been leaning towards AI models from the U.S., such as those from Google and Microsoft. However, the emergence of China's DeepSeek has propelled the popularity of the company's models in Southeast Asia due to its low cost and open-source licensing, which can be used to build on and adapt models to regional priorities. Open-source generally refers to software in which the source code is made freely available, allowing anyone to view, modify and redistribute it. Large language model players in China have been leaning into this business model since DeepSeek's debut. Previous panels at East Tech West have flagged open-source models as an important tool for regions outside of China and the U.S. to build their own sovereign AI capabilities. Meanwhile, on the hardware side, the U.S. remains a leader in AI processors through chip giant Nvidia. While the U.S. has restricted China's access to these chips, they remain on the market for Southeast Asia – which Chen suggested the region continue to take advantage of. However, Chen noted that there is a possibility that the AI landscape could change dramatically in a decade, with China being able to provide more affordable alternatives to Nvidia. "Don't take a side easily and too quickly. Think about how to maximize your economic potential," he suggested. GSMA's Gorman pointed out that facing this "balancing act" between the superpowers is not new for Southeast Asia. For example, the region's mobility industry heavily relies on Chinese tech manufacturing and hardware, as well as the U.S. for other areas such as telecommunications. Though the U.S. and China are clearly ahead in building advanced AI models, Southeast Asia has its own edge in the global AI space, panelists said. "If you think about AI as a technology, eventually you need to apply it to a real product to service. That's how people can use it," said The Asia Group's Chen. The region has a strong app environment which offers "great potential," he added. "The demographic is young, which means the potential for talent is always there, and R&D cost is relatively cheaper than other places." Cost considerations have already contributed to Malaysia's growth as a global powerhouse in AI data centers and computing, particularly in the southern Johor region. Still, Southeast Asia should make sure to bring in companies which have advanced manufacturing that domestic industries can learn and benefit from – a strategy that China used to catch up to the West in advanced technologies, said Chen. According to GSMA's Gorman, Southeast Asia could also be a neutral ground between China and the U.S., where the two sides come together and have high-level dialogues on how to apply AI responsibly. Southeast Asia can also play a proactive role in AI regulation itself, he said, citing recent examples of regulatory leadership from the region, such as Singapore's Shared Responsibility Framework for tackling international scams and fraud. So far, there have been few global regulations on AI. While the EU has adopted a policy, the U.S. and ASEAN countries have yet to follow suit. Chen added that the region will need to band together and adopt common frameworks to gain a more prominent seat at the table of global AI development and regulation.
CNBC
01-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
As nations build 'sovereign AI,' open-source models and cloud computing can help, experts say
As artificial intelligence becomes more democratized, it is important for emerging economies to build their own "sovereign AI," panelists told CNBC's East Tech West conference in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday. In general, sovereign AI refers to a nation's ability to control its own AI technologies, data and related infrastructure, ensuring strategic autonomy while meeting its unique priorities and security needs. However, this sovereignty has been lacking, according to panelist Kasima Tharnpipitchai, head of AI strategy at SCB 10X, the technology investment arm of Thailand-based SCBX Group. He noted that many of the world's most prominent large language models, operated by companies such as Anthropic and OpenAI, are based on the English language. "The way you think, the way you interact with the world, the way you are when you speak another language can be very different," Tharnpipitchai said. It is, therefore, important for countries to take ownership of their AI systems, developing technology for specific languages, cultures, and countries, rather than just translating over English-based models. Panelists agreed that the digitally savvy ASEAN region, with a total population of nearly 700 million people, is particularly well positioned to build its sovereign AI. People under the age of 35 make up around 61% of the population, and about 125,000 new users gain access to the internet daily. Given this context, Jeff Johnson, managing director of ASEAN at Amazon Web Services, said, "I think it's really important, and we're really focused on how we can really democratize access to cloud and AI." According to panelists, one key way that countries can build up their sovereign AI environments is through the use of open-source AI models. "There is plenty of amazing talent here in Southeast Asia and in Thailand, especially. To have that captured in a way that isn't publicly accessible or ecosystem developing would feel like a shame," said SCB 10X's Tharnpipitchai. Doing open-source is a way to create a "collective energy" to help Thailand better compete in AI and push sovereignty in a way that is beneficial for the entire country, he added. Open-source generally refers to software in which the source code is made freely available, allowing anyone to view, modify and redistribute it. LLM players, such as China's DeepSeek and Meta's Llama, advertise their models as open-source, albeit with some restrictions. The emergence of more open-source models offers companies and governments more options compared to relying on a few closed models, according to Cecily Ng, vice president and general manager of ASEAN & Greater China at software vendor Databricks. AI experts have previously told CNBC that open-source AI has helped China boost AI adoption, better develop its AI ecosystem and compete with the U.S. Prem Pavan, vice president and general manager of Southeast Asia and Korea at Red Hat, said that the localization of AI had been focused on language until recently. Having sovereign access to AI models powered by local hardware and computing is more important today, he added. Panelists said that for emerging countries like Thailand, AI localization can be offered by cloud computing companies with domestic operations. These include global hyperscalers such as AWS, Microsoft Azure and Tencent Cloud, and sovereign players like AIS Cloud and True IDC. "We're here in Thailand and across Southeast Asia to support all industries, all businesses of all shapes and sizes, from the smallest startup to the largest enterprise," said AWS's Johnson. He added that the economic model of the company's cloud services makes it easy to "pay for what you use," thus lowering the barriers to entry and making it very easy to build models and applications. In April, the U.N. Trade and Development Agency said in a report that AI was projected to reach $4.8 trillion in market value by 2033. However, it warned that the technology's benefits remain highly concentrated, with nations at risk of lagging behind. Among UNCTAD's recommendations to the international community for driving inclusive growth was shared AI infrastructure, the use of open-source AI models and initiatives to share AI knowledge and resources.
