More than half of companies across Asia Pacific have adopted AI, according to a new survey by MIT Technology Review Insights

SINGAPORE, March 6, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey by MIT Technology Review Insights, in association with ADP, Infocomm Media Development Authority, Genesys, Splunk, and the Asia School of Business, finds that executives in Asia Pacific are bullish about the prospect of artificial intelligence (AI) transforming their companies. The research, which has been published in two reports, "Asia's AI agenda: The ecosystem" and "Asia's AI agenda: AI for business," is based on a multi-industry survey of 871 senior executives drawn from 13 Asia-Pacific markets.

"While AI is not yet a mainstream application, it is being used by more than half of the companies we surveyed across Asia Pacific to solve business problems, create new products and services, and increase productivity," says Claire Beatty, editor of the report. "Executives report that they are satisfied with the AI ecosystems that are emerging across the region, and that the business areas first to be augmented by AI are customer channels and processes." The research finds that:

    --  Asia has credible potential for becoming a frontrunner in the AI era.
        From China to Japan, Singapore to India, policymakers across Asia are
        developing national-level plans for using AI to enhance domestic and
        regional competitiveness. Business leaders are positive about the
        region's AI resources, particularly data availability and the quality of
        external talent. More can be done to bolster the R&D environment, and
        governments can still provide greater support.
    --  China is rapidly applying AI, but basic research lags. The abundance of
        data, firm government push, and highly innovative tech companies give
        China a distinct advantage in applying AI to domains such as healthcare
        and finance, and across mobile platforms. Yet foundational research can
        be strengthened by further integrating private-sector and academic R&D.
    --  More than 50% of the Asia-Pacific companies in the survey sample have
        already launched AI. Businesses in Asia are past the halfway mark when
        it comes to deploying AI. The highest level of AI penetration is in
        North Asia--Japan and South Korea. Indonesia and Vietnam are at the most
        nascent stage; with just a quarter of companies using AI.
    --  The top three AI priorities are improving the customer experience,
        faster and better business decisions, and increasing operational
        efficiency. Less than a third of the 'AI adopters' have a centralized
        strategy for AI, with the majority (39%) deploying AI on a case-by-case
        basis. Improving the customer experience is the number one priority,
        with more than half of survey respondents already having used AI in
        customer processes. Greater decision-making speed and quality, and
        increased operational efficiency, are also ranked as organizational
        priorities for AI.
    --  AI constraints include talent, a lack of data, and high costs. A
        shortage of internal talent, noted by 58% of survey respondents, ranks
        as the region's greatest challenge in deploying AI. Yet filling the gap
        is not easy, as AI engineers are scarce and in high demand. Other top AI
        challenges reported in the survey include insufficient data and high
        costs of deployment.

Download:
https://s3-ap-southeast-1.amazonaws.com/mittr-intl/AsiaAIecosystem.pdf
https://s3-ap-southeast-1.amazonaws.com/mittr-intl/AsiaAIbusiness.pdf

Claire Beatty
Editorial Director, custom research - Asia
cbeatty@mit.edu

About MIT Technology Review Insights
https://insights.techreview.com/about/

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SOURCE MIT Technology Review Insights