As we navigate through the midpoint of 2023, it is essential to reflect on the significant innovation trends shaping Southeast Asia’s landscape. These innovations are not just transforming the region’s business and economic environments but are also moulding future career opportunities for the next decade.

Here, we have extracted wisdom from several leaders on the On Call with Insignia podcast, drawing their experiences and perspectives to shape a clearer picture of these exciting trends.

AI beyond GPTs: Careers tied to data value chain

The democratisation of AI capability acquisition brought by models like GPT hinges heavily on the presence of high-quality, relevant data. The future seems particularly promising for organisations that are rich in structured, quality data, potentially transforming AI experiences. This means careers tied to building and leveraging tools to tap into these data sets and develop hyperlocalised or customisable applications will be in greater demand in this decade.

Data sets and the ability to leverage these for AI applications are the new moats for software companies. Christian Schneider, CEO and co-founder of data processing and workflow automation platform Bluesheets, shares on our podcast: “Having that data infrastructure in place is key, and that’s going to be a deciding factor as to who’s gonna own industries in the future, it’s going to be those companies who have the best data sets, the richest data sets, the ones that are most complete with the least anomalies and incompletion in general.”

Experienced humans are still needed to guide AI development. Dino Setiawan, CEO and co-founder of supply chain financing and SaaS for Indonesia’s FMCG MSMEs AwanTunai, shares on our podcast: “Deep learning models need tens of millions of data points and users, and only a few companies have access to these data sets…​​understanding risk management is critical before building science models that can surpass human performance. And to get the right set of variables and proxies, experienced humans need to guide AI engine development.”

Agriculture beyond farm-to-table: Careers in farming and fisheries

The innovations in agriculture are seeing a shift towards the upstream and middle chains. There’s a rising demand for increased productivity, efficient distribution, and a stable supply-demand equilibrium, which points towards promising career opportunities in these industries, as businesses seek to increase income generation from these sectors by disrupting production, pricing and distribution inefficiencies.

Also Read: From crunching numbers to transforming data: How I made a career switch from accounting to tech

Fisheries Iron Triangle in Indonesia is being funded and built out, showing promise for jobs in this sector. Bayu Anggara, CEO of Indonesian cold chain fisheries startup FishLog, shares on our podcast: “For this fisheries digitalisation, it’s very exciting because I think in terms of all of the agritech space in Indonesian fisheries [is in a] very strong position. They have multiple business models, unique business models, right? So actually, we can focus on two things.

The first one is any kind of solution or any kind of technology that can increase the productivity of the farmers. Then you give the IoT technology to increase their productivity, and then at the end, you can purchase their harvest. The second one is a model like FishLog, right? How can we increase the utility of the middle chain?”

Fintech beyond fintechs: Careers in unlocking financial services for companies

As the financial industry continues to mature in Southeast Asia, fintech is becoming a key driver for many businesses. Even from a venture capital investment standpoint, it continues to be one of the more resilient sectors amidst the current market headwinds.

However, it’s not just the pure fintech companies that are benefitting from this trend. Now, businesses in other sectors are harnessing fintech to streamline operations, optimise efficiency, and offer better services to their customers. Roles or functions dedicated to unlocking these functionalities will be critical even for non-technology companies.

Also Read: How you can future-proof your career in a rapidly changing world

Solutions for interoperability, risk management, and infrastructure will be important for fintech to truly be “everywhere”. Jui Takle, Strategic Development at Tonik, shares on our podcast: “What it lacks is interoperability between the digital banking platforms and payment systems, which is a major obstacle in the growth of digital banking in Southeast Asia. Interoperability allows seamless transactions between digital platforms and systems, just like how it is in India with UPI. In any ecosystem, the first thing that develops is payments, and then the rest follows. So I would say that there is still some time for Southeast Asia to mature.”

Building for company sustainability: Careers in finance, cybersecurity, and monetisation strategies

While risk management and sustainability have traditionally been the responsibility of company boards, in today’s tech-driven world, these areas require specialised expertise. As such, there’s a growing demand for professionals with skills in finance, cybersecurity, and monetisation strategies. These roles are essential in helping businesses navigate challenges and ensure long-term sustainability.

Finance functions in the driver’s seat of businesses. Joel Leong, CMO of finance OS for businesses Aspire, shares on our podcast: “Basically businesses have had to readjust themselves multiple times in these two years. And I feel like all of this kind of brings finance back to the driving seat of the business.”

Southeast Asia’s startups are shifting from acquisition innovation to monetisation innovation and the experimentation necessary to do the latter efficiently. Gita Prihanto, COO of Indonesian P2P fintech Flip, shares on our podcast: “Also in line with what we’ve seen right now with the economy, this year is going to be a definitive year where I’m excited to see how technology companies innovate to scale monetisation, especially in the Indonesia consumer market, because the current economic and market conditions definitely put pressure to everyone and to all tech companies.”

Market expansion : Careers in unlocking new markets

The desire to expand into new markets is a shared goal for many Southeast Asian companies. While the region offers abundant opportunities, venturing beyond its borders can bring additional rewards, especially in markets that are also rapidly growing (i.e., similar pain points) and have massive market potential.

However, cracking new markets often requires a nuanced understanding of local needs, culture, and business environments. Thus, roles focused on market research, localisation, and business development in international contexts are becoming increasingly crucial.

Latin America as a destination market for SEA startups: Hernan Kazah, Kaszek Ventures Co-Founder And Managing Partner, shares on our podcast: “I think the kind of gaps or underserved markets that we have in Latin America are similar to those that you may encounter in Southeast Asia. So if someone is solving something for the education sector or for the distribution sector or something around healthcare in Asia, probably the same problem is in Latin America. So then, how you apply that solution to that market, you might need to adjust things here or there, but I think the root of the problem is probably the same one.”

Japan as a destination market for SEA SaaS/software startups: Shinji Asada, CEO and co-founder, general partner of Japanese SaaS VC firm One Capital shares on our podcast: “I see it’s probably a hard market to crack because of the language barrier and the cultural barrier, but at the same time, it’s a big market. It’s the third-largest economy in the world. Especially around enterprise software, it is the second-largest market after the United States. Let me give you some figures. It’s about 280 billion on an annual spending basis, and a lot of that is dominated by legacy software that I just mentioned when I was using it at ITOCHU. So it’s a low-hanging fruit [market] if you have a great user interface experience.”

The seven innovation trends identified in the first half of 2023 indicate the potential for significant career opportunities in the Southeast Asian tech industry over the next decade. These areas – from AI to fintech to risk management – highlight the region’s dynamic nature and its willingness to embrace new technologies and ideas. The expert insights shared in this podcast reaffirm the vast potential of Southeast Asia as a thriving hub for innovation, entrepreneurial growth, and career advancement.

Full list of trends in this article.

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