Artificial intelligence is booming in Asia. According to Parag Khanna, for example, countries like China, Singapore and Japan are now leading the way in AI research, development and deployment. Malaysia, Indonesia and India, meanwhile, are developing national AI strategies. AI is already becoming an integral part of life in Asia in finance, retail and healthcare. China is the world leader with a corresponding annual research and development spend of nearly USD 275 billion. And it is estimated that AI could add a trillion dollars to the region's GDP by 2030.
Thought leader and GDI Research Partner Parag Khanna is convinced that when it comes to using AI, the difference between China and the US lies in super apps like Weibo and WeChat: “China has these customer mobile internet super apps, where all the functions are combined.” This, he says, enables these apps to collect much richer and more complete data. Another factor in Asia's AI advance is “perception AI”, which China is using to collect vast amounts of data and drive AI through surveillance cameras and facial recognition software.
Parag Khanna talks about AI programmes in Korea and Singapore and the Asian view of AI in health and education in this video: