Mobile internet users in Thailand are quite keen on the coming age of AI despite awareness of potential risks and privacy concerns, and most are already using it, according to a new Telenor Asia study.
According to Telenor Asia’s “Digital Lives Decoded 2024 (Thailand)” report released on Tuesday, nearly half of Thai mobile internet users (47%) say AI is the new technology they are most excited about, followed by metaverse (40%) and robotics (38%).
Moreover, 77% of respondents said they’re already using AI tools in some form or other, mainly in the “entertainment” category, a little over half of which is used on social media platforms.
In fact, around 82% of respondents said they believe AI will have a positive impact on social media, although the report doesn’t specify what impact users think AI will have.
There’s slightly more enthusiasm for AI in the realm of education, with 85% of respondents believing that AI will contribute positively to their education. This seems to be especially true for Gen Z respondents, with almost 7 in 10 trusting educational content “a lot/completely”, versus half of older generations.
That said, it’s Thailand’s older generations that are showing greater excitement for AI overall, with 55% of baby boomers and 50% of Gen Xers expressing enthusiasm about AI, versus millennials (45%) and Gen Z (43%).
The Telenor Asia report also found that Thai internet users don’t use much AI at work – at least compared to their counterparts in Malaysia and Singapore, where work is the top use case for AI. Only around 20% of Thai respondents use AI at work, although the study found that those who do are 43% more likely to trust AI-generated information, especially from AI chatbots, the report said.
Another key finding is that while most Thai users trust AI and find it a useful addition to their digital mobile lifestyle, they’re also not unaware of the privacy implications and risks of AI-integrated mobile phones.
For instance, the biggest concern is misuse of personal data for 46% of respondents, which isn’t surprising given the huge amounts of user data harvested by AI tools and apps. Other concerns include unauthorised access to sensitive information (42%) and unethical use of AI by companies or governments (40%).
On the other hand, such concerns are lower in Thailand than in Malaysia and Singapore, while trust in AI-generated information is higher across the board in Thailand across all aspects.
A possible explanation could lie in another section of the report which found that while 75% of Thai respondents feel they lack control over their personal data online, Thai users also tend to be paradoxically more trusting of how companies use that data.
For example, the report says, 38% of Thais say they trust the websites they use to protect their privacy (compared to 21% in Singapore), while 60% said they will give permission to companies to access their personal data in exchange for personalised offers and services (versus 50% in Malaysia and Singapore).
In other words, mobile internet users in Thailand prioritise convenience over privacy concerns, the report said.
The Telenor Asia report – which is based on research by global consumer research agency GWI – comes at a time when Thailand is competing with neighbouring countries to establish itself as a digital data centre hub for Southeast Asia to support growing demand for AI infrastructure.
Amazon Web Services officially launched its AWS Asia Pacific (Thailand) Region earlier this month as part of its overall commitment to invest more than US$5 billion in the country up to 2037.
Microsoft announced in May 2024 it would build its first data centre region in Thailand. Google first announced plans to build a cloud region in Thailand in August 2022.
In October last year, Equinix announced it would invest around US$500 million in Thailand over the next ten years, starting with two new IBX data centres in Bangkok.
Meanwhile, operators such as True Corp (in which Telenor Asia is an investor) have been positioning themselves as AI pioneers. In November 2023, True unveiled its strategy for sustainable AI adoption that included guidelines for ethical usage of the technology in Thailand.
Manisha Dogra, senior VP of external relations and sustainability at Telenor Asia, said the new report illustrates the transformative potential of AI coupled with mobile technology.
“To fully tap into the momentum surrounding this technology, building trust, prioritising education and encouraging digital responsibility will need to take centre stage to enable users in Thailand to thrive confidently in the age of AI,” she said in a statement.