The global logistics sector, having experienced a year of stabilisation in 2024, is now navigating through a “fog” of persistent economic, geopolitical, and environmental pressures, with 2025 poised for “fragile optimism”.

The State of Logistics Report, released by the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) and authored by Kearney, highlights that while technological integration and a continued focus on resilience and sustainability drive cautious advancement, uncertainties, particularly those stemming from new tariff trade tensions, remain front and centre.

Also Read: Southeast Asia steps up: Complexity, opportunity, and the post-China trade shift

For Southeast Asia’s burgeoning tech and logistics landscape, these global shifts present both challenges and significant opportunities.

Macroeconomic Crossroads and Tariff Tornadoes

The global macroeconomic situation is marked by diverging growth trajectories and inflationary pressures. While the United States anticipates moderating real GDP growth of around 1.7 to 1.8 per cent in 2025 and Europe expects a slight acceleration to 1.3 to 1.5 per cent, emerging and developing Asia is forecast to grow robustly at 3.6 per cent. This strong regional growth, supported by stable domestic conditions and robust external demand, positions Southeast Asia as a key player in the evolving global trade narrative.

However, the spectre of “tit-for-tat tariff actions” is set to become an integral component of international trade policy, disrupting global supply chains. The report warns that these tariffs could increase the landed cost of goods, force shifts in sourcing decisions, and create entirely new global trade flows.

Ocean and ports are identified as the most vulnerable transport modes to tariff impacts. The elimination of the “de minimis” tariff exemption, notably affecting US imports, is already forcing major shifts, with Chinese e-commerce giants like Temu suspending direct shipments from China to the US and Shein moving to a “local fulfilment model”. This could lead to a redirection of trade volumes and a re-evaluation of supply chain partners across Asia.

The tech imperative: AI, automation, and data as growth drivers

Technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, is identified as a critical enabler for the logistics industry to boost margins and value. AI implementation is expected to penetrate deeper into logistics operations, acting as an inflexion point to counter declining productivity gains and boosting global GDP.

Logistics firms increasingly adopt AI for real-time inventory visibility, decision-making, and optimising demand planning, inventory management, and delivery routes.

Examples abound: Flexport is leveraging generative AI for document parsing, processing 15,000 shipping documents monthly and slashing costs from US$5 to US$10 per document to mere cents.

Also Read: US tariffs disrupt global trade, forcing a rethink in Southeast Asia

CEVA Logistics is partnering with Google to optimise vessel routing and container handling using AI. In warehousing, greater automation, including robots and autonomous systems, is mitigating labour shortages and enhancing productivity. This technological push opens significant avenues for Southeast Asian tech startups to develop and deploy tailored AI and automation solutions for regional logistics players.

E-commerce’s Relentless Rise and the “Barbell Effect”

E-commerce continues its relentless rise, with global online retail sales nearing US$6.3 trillion in 2024, intensifying competition across parcel and last-mile delivery. Consumer preferences reveal a “barbell effect,” splitting demand between ultra-fast delivery for essentials and ultra-low-cost, slower shipping for non-essentials.

Chinese platforms like TEMU and Shein aggressively grew their US e-commerce gross merchandise value by over 75 per cent and 60 per cent, respectively, in 2024, focusing on budget-friendly, slower delivery models. As these dynamics ripple globally, Southeast Asia’s vibrant e-commerce market will likely see similar pressures for diversified delivery options and cost-efficient solutions.

Resilience, relocation, and opportunities for Southeast Asia

The post-pandemic era, coupled with heightened geopolitical tensions and new trade policies, has shifted companies’ focus from short-term cost savings to long-term strategic priorities: resilience, flexibility, and growth. Supplier diversification and production relocation are becoming key strategies.

The report explicitly notes that semiconductor-adjacent tech firms are considering shifting both assembly and full production from China to Southeast Asia, driven by tariff pressures and customer demand for supply base diversification. A prime example is Apple, which has already moved production to Vietnam and India in response to the US-China trade tensions and tariffs.

Furthermore, while nearshoring to Mexico struggled in 2024, Asian low-cost countries and regions (LCCRs) successfully filled the gap between demand and supply, with trade increasing by US$90 billion (ten per cent) in 2024. This underscores Southeast Asia’s growing strategic importance as an alternative manufacturing and sourcing hub, demanding agile logistics partners and robust infrastructure.

Sustainability: Balancing compliance with business case

The sustainability landscape in logistics is becoming increasingly complex, marked by divergent regulatory approaches. While the European Union enforces stricter mandates, the United States adopts a more voluntary, market-driven approach.

However, companies exporting to Europe and Asia, including many in Southeast Asia, will still be required to comply with stringent sustainability reporting standards, such as those under the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).

Also Read: Southeast Asia’s supply chain strategy in a tariff-driven world

This growing focus on tangible return on investment (ROI) means companies are revising sustainability targets to align with cost savings. Technology, including IoT, blockchain, and AI, is proving essential in achieving these dual goals by optimising resource use and tracking emissions, offering transparency and efficiency. This pragmatic approach to “green logistics” creates opportunities for tech startups developing solutions for emissions tracking, route optimisation, and sustainable supply chain management in Southeast Asia.

Sectoral dynamics: A glimpse across the board

Air freight: After a “banner year” in 2024 with 8.6 per cent growth, volumes are projected to slow to 5.8 per cent in 2025. Policy changes like the de minimis exemption removal will prompt shifts to bulk freight, impacting express air cargo.

Ocean/ports: Global ocean freight demand increased by 4.5 per cent in 2024, driven by frontloading, but demand growth is expected to slow to 3 per cent in 2025, with supply outpacing it, leading to reduced rates. Alliance restructuring and tariffs continue to reshape trade flows.

Third-party logistics (3PLs): Increasingly critical, 3PLs are expanding services to provide end-to-end support, adopting AI and automation for greater flexibility and resilience.

Warehousing: The US market stabilised in 2024, with higher vacancy rates and slowing construction. Labour stability and technology use are boosting productivity, while the threat of new tariffs is prompting some stockpiling of inventory.

Charting the course for Southeast Asia

As the global logistics sector navigates this complex and uncertain environment, agility, strategic planning, and aggressive technology adoption will be paramount. For Southeast Asia, the emphasis on supply chain resilience, the shift in manufacturing away from China, and the region’s strong economic growth projections represent a significant window of opportunity.

Tech startups in Singapore and across the region are uniquely positioned to innovate and provide digital tools, automation solutions, and supply chain visibility platforms that will enable businesses to adapt faster and grow smarter in this new era of global trade.

The future of logistics will undoubtedly be shaped by those who can convert uncertainty into strategic advantage.

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Southeast Asia’s emerging economies have demonstrated impressive resilience in 2024, but could the geopolitical challenges of 2025 amid widespread tariff uncertainty undo much of the region’s hard work? 

The impact of Trump’s tariffs, which were far stronger than many nations within the region had anticipated, was particularly severe for Asia’s emerging economies and threatens to undermine the growth of many poorer nations following years of risk aversion. 

Despite growing global uncertainty in Q4 2024, Southeast Asian economies remained resilient, with almost all reaching at least five per cent growth in the quarter. 

Leading the charge was Vietnam, posting 7.55 per cent growth. Meanwhile, Thailand overcame -5 per cent growth one year ago to rally by 3.2 per cent, representing its third-highest year-on-year quarterly growth rate in the past five years. 

Driving this growth were strong investments in the region alongside stable exports, output, and consumption figures. However, regional currencies experienced weakness against the US dollar due to expectations of high-for-longer interest rates in the United States. 

The return of Donald Trump to the US presidency has been a confounding factor in the first half of 2025 for Southeast Asia’s emerging economies at a time when stability has been much sought after for the region’s nations. 

According to a report by Systematix Research, the announcement of ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs by Donald Trump handed Southeast Asian nations the steepest rise in trade costs, followed by economies in Eastern and Continental Europe as well as the Middle East. 

The report concluded that the maximum increase in tariffs has been on emerging economies, “particularly in Asia and Eastern Europe.”

Given that 2024 saw a 40 per cent decline in venture capital investments in Emerging Venture Markets (EVMs) involving Southeast Asia as well as the Middle East and Africa, the timing of Trump’s tariffs has been particularly challenging for the region’s emerging economies. 

In what were termed ‘reciprocal tariffs,’ Southeast Asian nations such as Cambodia and Vietnam were hit with 49 per cent and 46 per cent tariffs overnight, before President Trump announced a 90-day delay to the imposition of the levies. 

Both nations are key production hubs for apparel and sports goods manufacturers due to their competitive labor costs, and US firms like Nike and Gap have sought to expand their production in these emerging markets in recent years. 

Measuring the impact of tariffs

Some of Southeast Asia’s more ambitious economies, like Thailand and Malaysia, have sought to join BRICS as a means of securing greater trade and investment opportunities on a global scale in recent months. Now, as the United States enters a period of extreme protectionism, affected trading partners are rapidly looking for solutions. 

In terms of the direct impact of tariffs on Thailand’s economy, the uncertainty of the 90-day postponement has left exporters in a state of flux, and the full impact is likely to become more noticeable in the second half of the year. 

Also Read: Market insights: Ethereum challenges Bitcoin’s dominance, US dollar strengthens, gold dips as trade tariff fears ease

Thailand’s export exposure to the United States accounts for 18 per cent of the nation’s total exports and 2.2 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP). This comprises sectors like electronics, machinery, automotive, electrical appliances, and processed foods. 

Additionally, Thai exports will experience further impacts through global supply chain producing for US demand for rubber, automotive parts, metal and steel, and chemical products, which account for around 4.3 per cent of the country’s exports. 

The tariff time bomb facing Thailand comes at a time when the emerging economy announced that its March 2025 exports reached a historic high of US$29.5 billion at a year-on-year growth rate of 17.8 per cent, the highest monthly export value ever recorded for the country. 

These impressive growth rates have been supplemented by growing international trade and company registration growth in Thailand throughout 2024, but the outcome of Trump’s tariffs will have a deciding role in the nation’s long-term growth. 

Growth forecasts from INVX Research have slashed Thailand’s rate for 2025 to 1.4 per cent, down significantly from earlier projections of 2.5 per cent. An estimated three per cent contraction in exports, with the fourth quarter forecasted to see a double-digit decline, is a key factor in the revision. 

Signs of resilience in productivity

Last year, World Economic Forum forecasts suggested that trade among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will grow by US$1.2 trillion over the next decade. By 2031, the report claims that ASEAN exports have the potential to surge by nearly 90 per cent versus overall global trade growth of less than 30 per cent. 

Also Read: US tariffs disrupt global trade, forcing a rethink in Southeast Asia

Although Trump’s tariffs will impact growth rates, it’s clear that emerging Asian economies are becoming a strong hub for supply chain diversification for global manufacturers seeking to explore new markets, build resilience, and manage operating costs. 

As a rapidly emerging manufacturing hub, Southeast Asia could yet discover a more self-sufficient model without the same level of reliance on exports to the United States. 

With artificial intelligence forming the next frontier of innovation, Southeast Asia’s emerging economies also have a key advantage thanks to the 672 million-strong population throughout the 10 emerging economies in the region. Of these demographics, more than 200 million residents are aged between 15 and 35, and their collective tech fluency could aid Southeast Asia’s strong economic outlook for life in the age of tariffs. 

Thriving in uncertainty

Learning to live with higher tariffs is likely to be the key to the short-term future of Southeast Asia’s emerging economies. But indications show that there’s plenty of resilience and momentum generated among the region’s growing nations. 

The future may hold a level of self-sufficiency without reliance on exporting to the United States. The potential of building an AI infrastructure can also be a major help in out-innovating trade issues regionally. 

Southeast Asia’s emerging economies entered 2025 with impressive momentum, and there’s no reason why the region’s strong growth rate can’t be recaptured following the hit of trade uncertainty with the US.

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There aren’t many memorable speeches that can energise and fire up a crowd. Michelle Obama’s speech at the DNC 2024 did that. I found myself enthralled, mesmerised, and in awe of her skill and ability as an orator—so much so that I watched her speech FIVE times yesterday.

As with most speeches, hers would’ve been drafted, edited, redrafted and refined numerous times by her speech writer and herself. However, it’s the combination of her charisma, delivery, timing, enunciation, tone, voice, eyes, hand gestures and posture that brought her words and message across so authentically, emotionally and powerfully.

As co-owner and CEO of an award-winning communications agency group, I get to work with our clients on a range of strategies to empower them to get their key messages to their audiences in the most effective and engaging way. So, as I watched Obama’s captivating speech, I started noting why hers, above everyone else’s, was so extraordinary and on point.

I broke it down into eight key ways that made her speech so effective.

• Personal connection: She shared her own experiences, making her relatable and genuine. By sharing her grief over her mother’s passing and shared values, she connected her own experiences with nearly everyone in the crowd who has at one point in their lives felt the same. This made her message resonate on a personal level.
• Emotional depth: She spoke from the heart, addressing universal emotions like grief, hope, and resilience. Her speech was not just about facts or policy; she skillfully combined facts with emotional storytelling, making her speech resonate not just intellectually, but emotionally.

Also Read: Storytelling: Startup’s secret sauce for turning founder narratives into golden assets

• Clear messaging: She communicated complex ideas simply and directly, all the while, using her facial and body language to reinforce her points. This was punctuated with deliberate pauses, allowing her words to sink in and giving the audience time to reflect on her messages.
• Rhetorical mastery: Her use of repetition, parallelism, and rhetorical questions effectively reinforced key messages, making them truly memorable.
• Storytelling: She uses stories from her life and the lives of others to illustrate her points. She told them in vivid and descriptive ways, almost like she was having a personal conversation with the audience. Her language was straightforward and easy to understand. Instead, she made her points clear, purposeful and relatable.
• Call to action: Adopting Kamala Harris’ mother’s words, “Don’t sit around and complain about things. Do something!”, she directly challenged the audience to take action rather than remain passive. She also instilled a sense of urgency. Her expansive gestures and a raised chin further punctuated the need for everyone to take action – to “do something”. These words were repeated numerous time and she got the audience to say them with her, further reinforcing the key.
• Inclusivity: She frequently used inclusive language like “we”, “our” and “us,” to engage the audience, emphasising that they’re all part of the solution for the future and foster unity. She also referenced the sacrifices of previous generations, appealing to a broad audience’s sense of responsibility and legacy.
• Confident delivery: Her strong and steady voice commanded attention and strong reaction from the audience. Throughout the speech, her body language — from her firm posture to her expressive hand and finger movements — draws in and engages the audience as well as reinforces her powerful words, making her message compelling yet so relatable.

Her ability to balance critique with hope, coupled with a clear moral vision, made her message compelling. By invoking shared struggles and responsibilities, she was able to rouse and fire up the audience. Her ability to connect with diverse audiences and her eloquent communication skills are unmatched.

I believe all these combined elements made her speech a real standout moment at the Convention. It was truly a perfect blend of personal authenticity, deep emotional resonance, masterful storytelling and strategic use of rhetoric, making it so incredibly unforgettable.

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A decade ago, most companies still hired within commuting distance of their headquarters. Local job markets determined who got a seat at the table—and often, innovation was confined to where offices happened to be located.

That era is ending. From Singapore to Stockholm, startups and enterprises are realising that the world’s best ideas don’t belong to one geography. What matters more now is agility, digital fluency, and creativity—skills that can emerge from anywhere, not just from major tech hubs.

The post-pandemic rise of remote collaboration tools, cloud-based infrastructure, and AI-assisted communication has made cross-border teamwork seamless. A 2024 McKinsey report found that over 58 per cent of high-growth companies now rely on distributed teams across at least three regions. What started as a necessity during global lockdowns has evolved into a deliberate strategy to access the world’s best talent, not just the nearest.

From outsourcing to offshoring to borderless collaboration

Offshore hiring is not the same as the outsourcing methods from the early 2000s. At that time, the focus was only on transactions; corporations sent out the same jobs over and over again to save money.

Now, outsourcing is based on a partnership approach that focuses on speed, competency, and innovation.

• To fill the deficiencies in technological skills in areas like AI, data science, cybersecurity, and cloud development, companies deploy offshore teams.
• Teams in different time zones can work together around the clock to speed up product discovery.
• Make your firm more stable by hiring people from other markets.

In Deloitte’s Global Outsourcing Survey 2024, 82 per cent of executives said they now view offshore collaboration as a source of innovation—not just cost efficiency. For many, the question isn’t whether to hire offshore, but how to integrate global talent into their core operations.

Understanding how borderless teams really work

As companies expand across borders, they’re also redefining what “team” means. The old idea of employees sharing one office has given way to a fluid model of digital collaboration.

Also Read: People-first teams: How SEA startups embrace remote-first culture in the AI era

Recent insights on offshorePH.com explore how global organisations are adapting their structures to this new normal. These discussions highlight that successful offshore hiring isn’t simply about recruitment—it’s about building systems that support cross-border trust, shared workflows, and cultural understanding.

This shift requires intentionality. Teams must invest in communication frameworks, digital tools, and leadership styles that empower collaboration despite distance. In doing so, they transform offshoring from a staffing tactic into a strategic ecosystem of innovation.

The rise of offshore talent in emerging tech roles

Technology is changing faster than schools can teach kids how to use it. This has caused a global skills gap, especially in new fields like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data engineering.

To fill this gap, businesses are hiring offshore tech experts who have both knowledge and the ability to grow. For instance:

• AI and data analysts from Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe increasingly run analytics for global fintech companies.
• Experts in blockchain and cybersecurity in India and the Philippines help new businesses protect their digital infrastructure.
• Product designers and creative developers in Latin America work with agencies in Australia and North America on campaigns that reach people in more than one market.

Gartner’s Global Tech Hiring Trends 2025 report found that 74 per cent of technology leaders plan to expand international hiring to access niche skills that are scarce in domestic markets. This approach not only resolves staffing bottlenecks but also diversifies problem-solving perspectives, which is critical for innovation.

Building trust in borderless teams

Working across borders is not without challenges. Cultural differences, communication gaps, and time zone coordination can affect project flow if not managed intentionally.

However, companies that thrive in this environment treat trust as a process, not a given. They know that proximity doesn’t guarantee collaboration—clarity does.

Here are a few practices that successful global teams apply:

• Document everything. Shared platforms like Notion or Confluence ensure decisions and tasks remain visible.
• Create asynchronous routines. Recorded updates or text-based stand-ups allow progress even when teams are offline.
• Encourage cultural curiosity. Leaders who understand how their offshore colleagues communicate and celebrate wins foster stronger relationships.
• Measure outcomes, not presence. Productivity is defined by deliverables and impact, not by how many hours someone is online.

These principles help teams build a rhythm of accountability that transcends time zones.

Also Read: The hidden growth engine: How offshore creative teams are powering global marketing innovation

The human side of global collaboration

There is a tremendous personal tale behind the corporate numbers. Many offshore workers say they are happier working with global teams because they get to learn about new technologies, leadership styles, and ways of generating fresh ideas that they couldn’t find in their own country.

This situation is a win-win for businesses. Offshore workers get job security and career growth, while companies get more flexibility, scalability, and different ways of thinking. The end result is a new sort of workplace that is spread out, welcoming, and based on shared goals instead of shared geography.

World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2024 points out that this flexibility will define the next decade of work, where adaptability and cross-cultural competence will matter more than job titles or office locations.

What this means for the future of hiring

The next frontier of global business growth won’t be defined by geography—it will be defined by how seamlessly companies can integrate talent from anywhere.

Those who continue to rely solely on local hiring will find themselves constrained by market limitations, while those who embrace borderless strategies will have access to global innovation pipelines.

In this new era, offshore hiring isn’t just about finding people to fill roles—it’s about rethinking what’s possible when diverse perspectives collaborate toward shared outcomes. The future of work is already global. The smartest companies are simply building the systems to keep up with it.

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For as long as any of us can remember, we’ve been told that living beyond our means leads to ruin.

Households can’t run on endless debt; governments that borrow too much eventually face crisis. Every chart of debt-to-GDP ratios seems to tell the same moral story: prudence wins, profligacy fails.

That was true for all of human history — until now.

Because the very nature of what counts as GDP, and who or what produces it, is about to change.

Why GDP made sense — until it didn’t

Gross Domestic Product per capita has guided economic thinking since the Industrial Revolution. It measures total annual output divided by the number of people. It assumes that economic progress depends on the productivity of human workers — how much each person can produce per hour worked.

That framework worked because, for centuries, the main way to grow GDP was to make each human more productive. Productivity rose when humans learned to harness new energy sources.

A hunter-gatherer might produce only 3,000–6,000 calories of usable output per day. An early farmer, harnessing sunlight through crops and draft animals, might produce 20,000–50,000 calories. A modern mechanised farmer, with fossil fuels and machines, produces 1–10 million calories — a thousand-fold leap.

Similar leaps defined the Industrial Revolution.

Around 1750, a pre-industrial worker produced the equivalent of 30,000–50,000 calories of work per day. By 1900, the early industrial worker — amplified by coal and steam — produced 300,000–500,000 calories.

Today, backed by electricity, oil, vehicles, and digital tools, a modern worker channels 3–30 million calories per day. Each modern citizen, therefore, generates roughly the economic output of 10,000 pre-industrial farmers.

This is the energy logic behind the modern world. Civilisations rise when they harness new multipliers of human output — farming and industry being the two great historical examples.

The most advanced societies used these multipliers first and most efficiently, and their higher productivity financed everything that followed: armies, education, healthcare, and empires.

Debt as a constraint in the old system

Within that human-based production model, debt mattered.

Governments could only borrow in expectation of future human productivity. If productivity stalled, debt became unserviceable, and crises followed. The 2008 financial crash and the austerity era that followed reflected exactly that dynamic: leverage without productivity growth leads to stagnation.

By 2025, global debt ratios will again be at post-war highs. Governments have raised taxes, cut spending, and liberalised migration in search of growth. Yet living standards remain flat. Populations are angry, and politics are unstable.

The world feels trapped — too indebted to grow, too slow to innovate.

Also Read: In the age of AI, people matter more than ever

The third great productivity revolution

AI breaks that trap.

Like farming and steam power, AI is not just another technology. It is a worker multiplier. But for the first time in history, these new workers — AI agents — require no food, housing, healthcare, or transportation. They can be created instantly and in unlimited numbers.

It no longer takes twenty years of nurturing and education to add a new productive citizen. It takes switching on a GPU.

And unlike human workers, AI systems don’t stop improving. They self-learn and replicate instantly. Every marginal improvement in one AI spreads across all others at the speed of light. Productivity growth is no longer constrained by human learning curves; it is bounded only by electricity supply and computing capacity.

The compounding advantage

AI development is Lamarckian — acquired improvements are inherited. Each advance in model capability, dataset quality, and hardware efficiency instantly propagates. That makes early leadership exponentially valuable. Even a modest initial lead compounds into an unbridgeable gulf.

The industrial gap between Britain and China in 1850 was perhaps 5-to-1 in per-capita output. Within fifty years, it was 20-to-1. The same mathematics will apply to AI — except faster.

This means the first governments to mobilise massive investment in energy, computing, and data infrastructure will lock in global dominance for decades. The laggards will find themselves unable to catch up, no matter how prudent their fiscal policy once seemed.

Energy becomes the new currency

That shift flips the logic of economic policy.

For the last two centuries, the key to growth was capital formation — machines, factories, infrastructure, and education. In the AI age, capital still matters, but the limiting factor is power — literally, electrical energy.

Microsoft has admitted it already owns GPUs it cannot turn on for lack of power. Data centres in the United States, Europe, and Asia are running into grid limits. The country that solves the energy bottleneck — cheap, abundant, scalable power — will dominate global GDP for generations.

Why debt ceases to matter

Debt-to-GDP ratios are measured against today’s GDP, produced by today’s workforce.

If a nation with 40 million workers develops AI capacity equivalent to 400 million additional “digital workers” within five years, its GDP could multiply tenfold. The debt-to-GDP ratio would fall from 100% to 10% — without paying down a single dollar of principal.

Add robotics, autonomous logistics, and AI-driven R&D, and the same process repeats. Within another decade, output could rise another tenfold. A ratio that once looked catastrophic would be trivial. The denominator — productive capacity — explodes.

In short, governments that borrow aggressively now to build AI and energy infrastructure will find that their debt ratios collapse naturally as their AI-augmented GDP surges.

Governments that cling to “prudence” will instead face stagnation, as their GDP lags and their relative debt burden rises.

Also Read: Robotics, space, sustainability: The forces shaping Asia’s next tech chapter

Policy implications

If debt no longer constrains growth in an AI economy, what should governments borrow for?

• Electricity generation and grids: AI productivity is a direct function of watts available. National grids must double or triple capacity, including nuclear, renewables, and next-generation storage.
• Compute infrastructure: National data centres, sovereign AI models, and chip-fabrication capacity should be treated as strategic assets akin to navies or space programs.
• Data sovereignty: Training data is the feedstock of future productivity. Open, clean, diverse national datasets are a public good.
• Human adaptation: Education systems must focus on governance, ethics, and human-AI collaboration, not rote technical skills that AIs will outperform.
• International lending reform: Institutions such as the IMF and World Bank must evolve from debt-limit enforcement to energy-capacity financing.

Borrowing to fund consumption will still lead to collapse. But borrowing to fund energy and compute infrastructure — AI’s equivalents of land and steam — creates compounding output that repays itself many times over.

The new empire builders

History shows that those who first harness a new energy-productivity regime reshape civilisation. Agriculture birthed empires; steam powered the Industrial Age.

AI and abundant energy will define the next world order.

If Britain borrowed heavily in the 19th century to build railways, factories, and ships — and reaped an empire spanning the globe — then those who borrow today to build compute farms, nuclear reactors, and AI networks may command not continents, but the entire solar system.

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Asia has long been an avid champion of robotic technology, with one of the highest adoption rates. It’s also leading in robotic innovation. This edge was showcased clearly this month. 

For one, China surprised the global tech community with the release of a human-like robot available for consumers to purchase at around the same price point as a high-end smartphone. 

Priced at ¥9,998 (US$1,370), Bumi is a three-foot-tall robot built by the company Noetix. The company believes this represents a turning point in robotics commercialisation, transforming humanoids from laboratory prototypes into everyday household devices.

On the industrial side, Neptune Robotics, a Singaporean robotics company, has closed its latest funding round, raising funds for a global push. The company raised US$52 million to accelerate the artificial intelligence-fuelled global expansion of its robots that clean the underside of giant ships.

The success of Neptune is one of many from Singapore, as showcased by the 10th edition of the Singapore Week of Innovation & Technology (SWITCH 2025), which returns to Marina Bay Sands from 29–31 October 2025. 

Yet Southeast Asia’s startups are going through a lean period as early-stage capital moves away from consumer-focused companies to deep tech, and the region’s startups and corporates need to adjust their thinking. 

Let’s take a look at some of the other sectors and regions from across all of Asia that have been hitting the headlines in recent weeks. 

Asia powers space exploration

First, China National Space Administration’s Chang’e-6 mission revealed specks of dust from a kind of water-bearing meteorite so fragile it seldom survives the trip through Earth’s atmosphere. 

This extract from the dark side of the moon offers new insights into our cosmos. Furthering space exploration, Oman became the first country in Southwest Asia to establish a regulated framework for space launches in the future. 

With this approval, Oman hopes to reduce the pressure on current launch windows that are creating bottlenecks and delays when it comes to putting new satellites into orbit. Companies can often wait for months, even years, for commercial flight approval.

Now, Oman has its first-ever commercial launch site. Located in Duqm, the Etlaq Spaceport allows for a range of commercial flights at a lower price point that few other countries can match.

Also Read: The circular economy as the next frontier for Asia’s innovators

Asia’s tech ecosystem brings new sustainability solutions to market

We’ve also noticed a surge in activity from startups and innovators in the sustainability and ESG sectors. 

For starters, Singapore’s RushOwl raised an impressive US$10M Series A round for its platform that aims to reduce overall carbon emissions by helping commuters ride share more easily. The proprietary AI technology from the startups promises to cut emissions by 50 per cent and commute times by 30 per cent. 

In Malaysia, capital markets are set to become a powerful driver of climate resilience and inclusive growth thanks to the launch of Dana Iklim+, the country’s first climate-focused investment fund. Backed by Malaysia’s public sector pension fund, Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP), the new fund marks a defining step in Southeast Asia’s sustainable finance landscape.

Meanwhile, in Australia, many corporations are now required by law to report on sustainability metrics related to operations and external activity.  Credibl has entered a strategic alliance with Deloitte Australia to launch SustainNext Climate Reporting, a collaboration designed to help businesses address the growing complexities of climate disclosure. 

Beyond sustainability, the tech ecosystem continues to bring the conversation around AI’s role in professional development, and how this is strategically gaining momentum across Asia. The upcoming Asia Association of Test Publishers (A-ATP) Conference, scheduled to take place in Hong Kong in November 2025, connects professionals from the region.

According to Jacob Evans, CTO of the global testing leader Kryterion, “AI-driven proctoring operates quietly in the background; it monitors behaviour, detecting anomalies, and maintaining exam integrity in real time.” Even in a post-pandemic world, remote assessments continue to be essential for professional certifications. However, traditional human proctoring, while effective, faces limitations in terms of scalability and consistency.

Indian founders fly the flag for tech excellence in Asia

In addition to the news of the partnership with Deloitte Australia, the successful trajectory of Credibl ESG is being led by Founder and CEO Jitesh Shetty. He is just one of many from the Indian diaspora who lead startup innovations globally. 

For example, Prezent AI is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, but the founder, Rajat Mishra, graduated from India’s top tech school. In addition, the startup has a satellite office in India’s Silicon Valley.

This month, Prezent AI raised US$30M of funding and acquired Prezentium, in a cash plus equity deal, bringing its total valuation to US$400m. The new milestone places the team on track to become the first enterprise business communication unicorn.

This coincides with the fact that India is poised for a trillion-dollar digital opportunity, driven by a decade of digital transformation, rising incomes, and technology-first progressive policies.

OnceMore, an AI-powered platform that enables film studios, music artists and sports organisations to engage with their fandoms like never before, is poised to take its slice of this huge opportunity. 

The platform went public this month and secured 1.9 million visitors and 1 million registered users across 60 countries in 42 hours. This achievement breaks the previous record set by ChatGPT, which hit its first million users in five days. 

Also Read: Can Southeast Asia power the EV and chip boom without leaving communities behind?

Finally, Ness Digital Engineering is led by CEO Dr Ranjit Tinaikar. This global full-lifecycle digital services transformation company has a longstanding presence in India and across Asia, thanks to its partnerships and offshore innovation centres across the region. 

These offshore centres are now being rebranded as Global Capacity Centres (GCCs) and are playing an increasingly strategic role as success factors for multinationals. South and Southeast Asia are the epicentre of this growth, with India, the Philippines, and Malaysia taking the lead with GCC offerings. India alone has over 1900 centres employing over 2.1 million professionals.

Now, Ness Digital Engineering brings GCCs to Mexico with the inauguration of its Mexico headquarters in Puerta de Hierro, one of Guadalajara’s most prestigious business districts. In a move that underscores Latin America’s rising importance in the global tech ecosystem, this reflects Ness’s commitment to building high-impact centres for AI-driven intelligent engineering. 

China and Spain strengthen their bonds through innovation

Finally, China and Spain continue to build strong ties. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Spain comprehensive strategic partnership. Over the past two decades, the two sides have continuously expanded cooperation areas, building a dynamic and resilient industrial and supply chain partnership. 

This month we saw several examples of how this decades-long partnership is helping to boost innovation and trade. 

On October 9, the China-Spain Trade and Investment Matchmaking Event took place in Madrid. Over 300 representatives from Chinese and Spanish enterprises and business associations gathered for the event, engaging in vibrant exchanges and active matchmaking sessions.

Meanwhile, ISDI, Spain’s first digital business school, hosted an innovation seminar in China on October 20. The summit was held in partnership with Yiqi Business School, a digital business school made in partnership with Chinese tech giant TCL. The week-long program aimed to immerse business and entrepreneurship students in one of the world’s largest technology ecosystems.

Taken together, these developments paint a clear picture of a region in motion. Asia is no longer reacting to global trends but setting them, driving breakthroughs that stretch from deep tech to sustainability to new forms of digital infrastructure. The diversity and pace of innovation across the region suggest that Asia’s next chapter will be one of leadership, not catch-up.

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The crypto market’s 1.24 per cent decline over the past 24 hours reflects a convergence of distinct yet interlocking pressures: security vulnerabilities, technical resistance, and macroeconomic ambiguity. All of this unfolds against the backdrop of a quiet US holiday week. While the broader seven-day trend remains in positive territory at plus 4.26 per cent, the short-term retracement underscores the fragility of risk sentiment in an environment where liquidity thins, correlations tighten, and geopolitical shocks reverberate through digital asset markets with amplified force.

This week’s bearish tilt lies in the Upbit hack, a stark reminder that even regulated, institutionally backed exchanges remain high-value targets for sophisticated threat actors. On November 27, South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency platform confirmed a theft of US$30.4 million in digital assets, with early forensic evidence pointing squarely to North Korea’s Lazarus Group. This attribution carries weight not only because of its geopolitical implications but also due to the group’s notorious track record of targeting crypto infrastructure to fund regime activities.

The market’s immediate reaction, a plunge into Extreme Fear as measured by the Fear & Greed Index dropping to 20, demonstrates how legacy concerns about custody and exchange security continue to haunt an asset class striving for mainstream legitimacy. Investors responded by rotating capital toward perceived safe havens within the crypto universe, notably Bitcoin, whose dominance rose to 58.61 per cent. This flight to relative stability highlights a recurring pattern. When trust in centralised intermediaries erodes, decentralised base-layer assets often benefit, even if only temporarily.

Compounding this security-driven caution was a decisive technical breakdown in Bitcoin’s price structure. For days, US$92,000 had served as a critical psychological and structural resistance level. The failure to sustain a breakout above this threshold triggered a cascade of algorithmic sell orders, resulting in US$20.41 million in liquidations, predominantly short positions caught off guard by the initial dip but unable to recover as momentum faded. Technical indicators further reinforced the bearish undertone. While the 14-day RSI at 42.63 remains technically neutral, it shows a clear loss of upward momentum, slipping from overbought territory earlier in the week.

Also Read: Can people analytics boost Malaysia’s labour market?

Meanwhile, the MACD histogram, though still positive at plus 20.24 billion, presents a troubling divergence. Price action contradicts the bullish signal implied by the indicator, suggesting a weakening of buyers’ conviction. Compounding the issue, derivatives open interest fell by nearly 5 per cent, signalling that leveraged traders are stepping back, a classic sign of risk aversion ahead of major macroeconomic events.

This brings us to the third pillar of today’s market dynamics: macro correlation and policy uncertainty. Despite the US equity markets being closed for Thanksgiving, crypto did not trade in isolation. Its seven-day correlation with the Nasdaq-100, measured via the QQQ ETF, has surged to an unusually tight 0.92. This near-perfect linkage means that even in the absence of US equity trading, crypto remains hostage to the same macro narratives driving tech stocks, namely, the path of Federal Reserve policy. Recent US jobs data came in stronger than expected, tempering market expectations for aggressive rate cuts.

While UOB still anticipates a 25 basis point reduction at the December 17 FOMC meeting, the probability has softened from near-certainty to approximately 85 per cent. This shift matters deeply for crypto, which has increasingly functioned as a risk-sensitive asset class. The slowdown in spot Bitcoin ETF inflows, dropping to just US$21 million on November 26 compared to US$128 million on prior high-volume days, reflects institutional hesitation. With the Fed entering its pre-meeting blackout period this weekend through December 12, 2025, traders are left to navigate a policy vacuum, relying on lagging indicators and thin holiday liquidity to set prices.

That thin liquidity has magnified market volatility. Total 24-hour trading volume across major exchanges fell by 21.5 per cent, a typical seasonal pattern during US holidays, but one that exacerbates price swings when large orders enter the market. In such environments, even modest sell pressure, whether from hacked assets being offloaded or leveraged positions unwinding, can trigger outsized moves. This dynamic is particularly acute in crypto, where market depth remains shallower than in traditional equities or FX markets, despite growing institutional participation.

Also Read: From Tokyo to crypto: How political shifts and policy bets are reshaping global markets

Within this short-term turbulence, structural undercurrents remain supportive. The broader macro environment still points toward impending monetary easing. Bond markets signal renewed appetite for fixed income, with UOB noting that spread widening has made quality bonds attractive again, a precursor to rate cuts. Meanwhile, the US dollar has held steady, and Asian currencies are gaining modest ground, buoyed by easing trade tensions and a stable Chinese yuan. These factors create a more favourable external backdrop for risk assets, including crypto, once the immediate fog of uncertainty lifts.

Looking ahead, three variables will dictate the market’s next directional move. First, developments in the Upbit investigation could either calm nerves if authorities confirm containment and recovery efforts or deepen panic if stolen funds begin circulating widely. Second, Bitcoin’s ability to hold the 89,080 dollar level, which corresponds to the 50 per cent Fibonacci retracement of its recent rally, will serve as a critical technical support.

A breakdown below this level could invite further liquidations and test deeper support zones. Third, and most importantly, Friday’s release of the US Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, will offer the clearest signal yet on whether December’s anticipated rate cut remains on track. A softer print would likely reignite risk appetite across equities, bonds, and crypto alike, while a hotter-than-expected reading could extend the current period of caution.

In sum, today’s dip is not a reversal of trend but a recalibration, a moment of hesitation amid overlapping uncertainties. The crypto market, now deeply enmeshed in the global macro framework, cannot escape the gravitational pull of Fed policy, tech sector sentiment, or geopolitical risk. Its resilience over the past week, despite the Upbit breach and technical rejection, suggests underlying demand remains intact.

The challenge for market participants lies in distinguishing transient noise from structural shifts. In a world where digital assets increasingly mirror traditional financial cycles, patience and precision will determine who navigates this transitional phase most successfully.

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In a world where women’s careers, relationships and life choices shift more rapidly than ever, a new startup called Podium is stepping in with a bold proposition: social health is as essential as physical or mental well-being. Founded by Singapore-based Mai Vo and Alka Gupta, Podium is a networking platform designed for women navigating pivotal life transitions.

At the heart of Podium is a precise diagnosis of a silent but widespread problem. As Vo and Gupta discovered in their research, nearly 70 per cent of ambitious women feel isolated during significant life transitions. The issue is not a lack of friends, but a lack of support systems designed for the realities modern women face: career pivots, fertility decisions, or leadership burnout.

“Traditional support systems weren’t built for what women are navigating today,” the founders explain. Their answer is Podium’s distinctive model, which blends AI-powered matching with curated, intimate gatherings that lead into structured programmes and retreats.

The goal, they say, is to build the global infrastructure for what they call social health. As Gupta puts it, “We’re building deeply human support that’s also globally scalable.”

Podium’s founding story is every bit as personal as the problem it seeks to solve. Vo, formerly at Google, and Gupta, who held leadership roles at Grab and BukuWarung, first connected while both were in the midst of significant life changes.

“We met while we were both in the thick of quitting our jobs and entering new life stages like getting married,” Vo recalls. “Our existing circles couldn’t meet us where we were, so we built the platform we needed; one that evolves with us as we grow.”

Also Read: Eluvo raises fresh capital to fix Philippines’s broken women’s healthcare system

The duo piloted more than 65 in-person events in 2024, refining Podium’s membership model with continuous feedback. Vo notes that the response reinforced their conviction. “We’re convinced Podium is becoming a must-have for working women,” she says.

Who joins Podium?

The typical Podium member is a woman in her late 20s to mid-40s, working at global companies such as Google, Amazon, Meta, BCG or Standard Chartered, or building early-stage startups across Asia. Many are in high-growth roles where career acceleration intersects with profound personal decisions.

Despite being bootstrapped for its first nine months, Podium amassed over 300 paying members and hundreds on the waitlist, fueled almost entirely by word-of-mouth referrals. To the founders, this organic growth is a powerful signal of product–market fit.

With new funding, the team plans to scale acquisition through incentivised referrals, product-led growth and partnerships. In a rare twist for an early-stage startup, Podium’s members are also its largest group of investors. What began as a casual announcement that the founders were preparing to raise funds quickly snowballed into an oversubscribed round, with more than 60 per cent of the capital contributed by Podium members, many of whom were first-time angel investors.

“Our investors aren’t just believers, but collaborators who have experienced the product from the inside,” Gupta says. “Our fundraise is proof of women’s economic power today — when something truly solves for our needs, we back it, we amplify it, and we help it scale.”

The founders say members will continue to enjoy first access to future rounds, turning Podium’s community into a strategic engine for its next phase of growth.

Also Read: Bridging healthcare and cybersecurity: How women are challenging stereotypes in tech

Podium’s business model is a tiered subscription offering that ranges from a base platform membership and peer discovery to curated salons and premium retreats. The structure, Vo explains, creates “a sustainable blend of accessibility and premium offerings.”

Unlike many networking apps that prioritise one-off encounters, Podium focuses on cultivating what the founders call “strong weak ties”: lightly held but high-quality relationships that evolve with its members. Their vision over the next 12 months includes expanding into new hubs such as Hong Kong and Dubai, cities where high-mobility lifestyles often leave women without stable support networks.

In the long term, the goal is ambitious: to make Podium the world’s leading platform for social health. The founders envision a global network where women can find references, role models, and support not only in their hometown but across every central hub.

With fresh capital and a loyal member base, Podium is preparing for its next chapter. The startup plans to double down on product innovation, strengthen its Singapore headquarters and build a top-tier team. International expansion remains firmly on the roadmap, but the founders emphasise that growth will be deliberate and mission-led.

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Images Credit: Podium

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Southeast Asia continues to prove why it is one of the world’s most dynamic regions for innovation, with its youthful population, deep digital adoption, and fast-evolving tech ecosystems. Insights from The Philippine Startup Ecosystem Report 2025 highlight how differently the ASEAN-6 markets are accelerating — each shaped by unique economic conditions, policy environments, and sector strengths.

Singapore remains the region’s anchor hub, combining capital depth, regulatory clarity, and world-class infrastructure. Its US$144B ecosystem value and dominant fintech and healthtech sectors show how strategic governance translates into global competitiveness.

Indonesia, meanwhile, leverages its massive population and rapid digital transformation to build scale. With strong services-sector growth and national AI programmes, it is positioning itself as a future-ready tech powerhouse.

Vietnam and Malaysia represent the region’s rising momentum. Vietnam’s impressive GDP growth and surging VC activity — up 17x since 2018 — underscore its shift into higher-value tech like AI and climate solutions. Malaysia’s maturing ecosystem and booming digital investments point to increasing investor confidence.

The Philippines, though trailing its peers in funding volume, shows remarkable resilience. Despite a 32% funding decline, its rapid digital economy growth and push into AI signal strong latent potential. What the Philippines lacks in institutional capital, it makes up for through founder grit — an asset that could define its next wave of innovation as domestic support structures catch up.

REGIONAL

Thai insurtech firm Roojai nets US$60M: Apis Partners and Asia Partners are lead investors. The company plans to use the new funds to expand in Thailand, accelerate its Indonesian operations, and pursue strategic acquisitions.

Cybercriminals launch 6.3M fake shopping scams; gaming platforms also under fire: Attackers increasingly follow users across online stores, gaming services, and streaming platforms, driving a massive 2025 rise in phishing and malware attempts.

ASEAN’s EV race: Indonesia rises 49% but lags behind Vietnam and Thailand: Strong incentives fuel Indonesia’s EV growth amid auto market contraction, yet limited charging infrastructure and consumer concerns pose major challenges ahead.

Temasek-backed Seviora bolsters regional strategy with Pavilion Capital integration: Pavilion Capital joins Seviora to form a US$72B asset manager, expanding private-market capabilities and strengthening Asia’s investment ecosystem.

Cost pressures, global uncertainty weigh on 2026 outlook for businesses in Singapore, finds survey: SBF Chief Executive Kok Ping Soon said businesses remain cautious about the 2026 outlook, despite reduced concerns over US tariffs.

Eluvo raises fresh capital to fix Philippines’s broken women’s healthcare system: Foxmont Capital is the lead investor. Funding supports Eluvo’s expansion of premium, women-led healthcare services, enhancing fertility, hormonal, sexual, and reproductive care in the Philippines’s underserved market.

Higala closes US$4M round to bring real-time payments to rural banks in Philippines: The investors include Talino Venture Studios, Kadan Capital, and 1982 Ventures. Higala will use the capital to lower digital barriers for rural banks and empower underserved regions with real-time financial services.

Temasek appoints ex-DBS CEO as India chairman: Piyush Gupta will serve in a non-executive role, focusing on investment strategies with Temasek’s India team. Temasek is looking to boost its roughly US$50B India portfolio with larger, more selective bets.

REPORTS, FEATURES & INTERVIEWS

Against the odds: Why Philippines remains SEA’s most undervalued startup market: Amid declining capital and ecosystem gaps, the Philippines’s booming digital economy positions it as the region’s most overlooked growth opportunity.

Philippines enters ‘Intelligent Era’ as AI becomes startup growth engine: AI adoption accelerates in 2025, boosting Philippine e-commerce, logistics, and fintech as the country advances into a more data-driven, intelligent economy.

Foreign funding follows incorporation: Singapore-registered Filipino startups report 100% international backing: Singapore’s stability and investor trust draw Filipino startups to incorporate abroad, revealing persistent Philippine governance gaps affecting growth and international competitiveness.

Inside Funding Societies’s strategy to help SMEs grow through stronger institutional funding: Operating across five Southeast Asian countries, Funding Societies adapts its offerings to the unique needs of each country.

INTERNATIONAL

South Korea’s Upbit halts trading after US$37M crypto hack: An unauthorised transfer of around US$37M in digital assets to an external wallet was detected by the firm. The incident took place a day after Upbit’s parent Dumanu announced a US$10.3B merger with the fintech unit of Naver.

North Korea’s Lazarus suspected in S Korea’s Upbit crypto theft: The hacking group stole about US$30.6M in cryptocurrency from Upbit, South Korea’s largest crypto exchange. A government official said it is possible hackers compromised or posed as administrator accounts, instead of attacking servers directly.

BYD, Geely seen to lead automaker global top 10 by 2030: McKinsey: BYD and Geely were already among the top 10 by sales in 2024, with BYD delivering 4.3M vehicles and Geely selling 3.3M units. China now accounts for over 30% of global car production, and more than 60% of EVs sold worldwide go to Chinese buyers.

Chinese EV makers push overseas as local sales slow: Analysts expect China’s new energy vehicle growth to slow to 13% next year, down from 27% in 2025, partly due to expiring tax breaks. Manufacturers like BYD, Geely, and Leapmotor are seen as better positioned for the expected market downturn.

China warns of bubble risk in humanoid robotics market: According to the National Development and Reform Commission, over 150 humanoid robot makers operate in China. Officials cautioned that a surge of similar products could crowd the market and reduce space for R&D.

SEMICONDUCTOR

Taiwan probes ex-TSMC executive over alleged Intel secret leaks: Taiwanese authorities searched the homes of Lo Wen-jen, a former senior executive at TSMC after the semiconductor firm filed a lawsuit accusing him of passing sensitive information to his new US employer. Intel has denied the allegations.

China blocks ByteDance from Nvidia chips in data centres: The TikTok owner bought more Nvidia chips than any other Chinese company in 2025 to boost computing power. The ban highlights China’s efforts to reduce dependence on US tech amid tighter US export controls on advanced semiconductors.

Nvidia CEO says company leads AI chip market despite competition: Jensen Huang described the AI market as “extremely large” and noted that Google could become a rival if Meta buys billions of dollars in tensor processing units (TPUs) from Google.

AI

Why 2026 will be the year AI finally delivers on its promise for finance: Despite widespread AI adoption claims, few startups run truly AI-native finance. In 2026, disciplined, data-driven CFOs will win by building unified AI stacks, clean data foundations, and agentic workflows that drive capital-efficient growth.

Why the illusion of AI perfection is quietly killing team innovation: AI’s polish can suppress collaboration by making work seem finished. Real innovation comes from visible imperfection, shared experimentation, and human awareness — not blind automation — enabling teams to question, iterate, and think together.

Nataraj Sindam: Charting the intersection of AI, product strategy and early stage innovation: Sindam explores the intersection of cloud, startups and AI, sharing grounded lessons shaped by product work and founder conversations.

The missing rung of the ladder: How AI automation is quietly breaking the career pipeline: AI is eliminating unproductive roles and entry level paths, creating a need for new training ladders and apprenticeship models.

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

Why we changed our vision after 11 years: Building a unified Southeast Asia: e27 shifts from founder-focused support to unifying Southeast Asia’s tech ecosystem through regional connection and collaboration.

New year, new funding strategies: Powering up sustainability tech startups: Sustainable tech demand is rising, pushing startups to deliver impactful, scalable solutions. With tougher funding conditions, founders must prove resilience, clear impact, strong differentiation, and ecosystem collaboration to attract investors.

Fed rate cut odds hit 85%: Here’s how stocks, crypto, and gold are reacting: Markets rallied on rising expectations of a December Fed rate cut, with strong labour data reinforcing optimism. Equities, crypto, and Asian markets surged, while bonds, currencies, and commodities reflected cautious but improving sentiment.

Robotics, space, sustainability: The forces shaping Asia’s next tech chapter: Southeast Asia’s robotics startups are going through a lean period as early-stage capital moves away from consumer-focused companies to deep tech, and the region’s startups and corporates need to adjust their thinking.

The role of edutech in an AI-ready workforce: Traditional training methods like long modules, static slide decks, and one-way seminars often fail to keep employees motivated. With edutech, trainers can design learning experiences that are interactive, using gamification and real-time feedback.

The rise of logistics startups in Southeast Asia: How AI powers supply-chain revolution: AI powered logistics is transforming Southeast Asia’s fragmented supply chains through smarter routing, forecasting and last mile automation.

Reinvention vs improvement: Are we changing the process or the product?: Innovation often boosts efficiency without changing purpose. True reinvention asks deeper questions, reimagining mobility, learning, and success. Education must shift from digitising old models to redefining what learning is for.

Gobi Partners’s expansion sets stage for increased Japan–SEA co-investments: Gobi Partners enters Japan via JR East’s LiSH hub, creating a cross-border venture bridge linking Japan’s innovation ecosystem with Southeast Asia’s growth markets.

The grant funding mindset: When non-dilutive capital becomes a mirror of founder readiness: Grant funding rewards disciplined systems and clean operations, not ideas, making readiness and consistency the true competitive edge.

Clean energy in Malaysia: Opportunity amidst uncertainty: Malaysia’s clean energy sector faces uncertainty as NEM2.0 ends and major players enter. Independent firms pivot to smart energy management, driving innovation despite COVID-19, while stakeholders await clarity on NEM3.0 and supportive policies.

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AI has transcended its status as a buzzword and is now essential for organisations determined to stay ahead in today’s competitive landscape. This reality is echoed across numerous technology events and research papers throughout 2025.

According to the Google Cloud research report on the 2025 State of AI infrastructure, 98 per cent of organisations are actively exploring its use, with 39 per cent already deploying it in production.

Here are three transformative AI trends that are shaping the future of innovation:

AI-powered personalisation

Personalisation fuelled by AI takes centre stage at technology discussions globally. Many innovators from startups to corporate leaders showcased how advanced data analytics combined with machine learning delivers hyper-personalised user experiences. From bespoke e-commerce recommendations to AI-generated visuals, this technology is helping brands deepen consumer engagement and brand awareness.

Take, for example, retail. The momentum behind AI-driven personalised shopping continues to accelerate rapidly. According to the McKinsey survey, “over 75 per cent of consumers are turned off by content that doesn’t feel relevant. The bar keeps rising, and AI makes it possible to meet that bar at scale.”

AI’s ability to personalise at scale is raising the bar in marketing and beyond.

Google’s Gemini personal AI assistant is an example of this move toward highly customised user experiences, bringing smart, responsive AI right to individuals’ fingertips. The development of such personal AI assistants marks a significant step toward creating seamless digital experiences, where technology not only responds to commands but proactively assists users in their daily lives. As AI continues to evolve, these assistants will become even more sophisticated, further blurring the lines between human and machine interactions and transforming how we access information and services.

Rise of agentic AI as autonomous collaborators

Agentic AI—intelligent systems capable of making independent decisions—is going to reshape how businesses operate. Moving beyond command-based tools, AI is expected to start acting as a proactive partner, autonomously interacting with customers and internal systems. This evolution fosters dynamic, adaptive business ecosystems where smart agents enhance responsiveness and efficiency across sectors.

Enterprises are fully embracing it. For example, Microsoft offers the opportunity to make an autonomous agent by using Microsoft Copilot Studio.

Also Read: When privacy becomes a privilege: Balancing user protection with fair access for innovators

At the industry and function level, agentic AI solutions in retail personalise shopping by autonomously recommending products and handling customer relationship management. AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants learn from customer behaviour to deliver timely and relevant support for service inquiries. This leads to improved customer satisfaction and more efficient business operations.

AI is transforming process automation across functions

Automation powered by AI is redefining operational workflows. From healthcare to marketing, organisations deploy AI to manage complex tasks and generate actionable insights with minimal human oversight.

Speaking of the industry level, in healthcare, AI can expedite diagnostics and design personalised treatment by processing massive medical data swiftly.

Another illustration of this trend is on the function level in marketing: technology startups leverage AI-driven predictive analytics to optimise ad spend, boosting return on advertising investment.

AI automation is also transforming marketing content creation and data management. By automating tasks such as data entry, transcription, and basic customer interactions, businesses boost efficiency and significantly lower operational costs.

According to responses received by SurveyMonkey in their questionnaire, 54 per cent of marketing agencies and 51 per cent of small businesses directly utilise AI tools to enhance efficiency and competitiveness, with many planning to expand their AI investments.

AI’s strategic role in amplifying performance is unmistakably expanding. Key advantages of AI automation include scalability—enabled by cloud infrastructure and adaptive models that handle growing business demands without manual scaling—speed as AI systems process data and respond in real time, and accuracy by minimising human error through consistent data validation and quality control. AI’s ability to autonomously manage complex workflows beyond human monitoring capacity is increasingly vital in dynamic business environments.

As 2026 comes, these trends mark a promising path forward—where innovation and real-world impact converge to redefine the future of technology.

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