Singapore lags in AI integration despite consumer preference: study

AI bias in the city-state significantly more than the global average

Singaporean brands lag behind global peers in leveraging AI even though consumers were becoming more inclined to AI-enabled tools and services over human interaction, according to a recent study by Adobe.

The firm found in its State of Digital Customer Experience Asia-Pacific report that nearly half of consumers in the city-state said they would choose AI-assisted brand interactions over human input, particularly for exploring new products and services. This surpasses the global average of 40%. Many more favored both options to be available.

Despite consumer preference and anticipation for the benefits of generative AI, only 12% of Singaporean brands adopt generative AI to enhance consumer experience, lower than the global average of 17%.

Singapore, meanwhile, beats global peers in rolling out upskilling initiatives for its staff working with generative AI.

Improving generative AI capabilities in the next year ranked second on the strategic agenda of Singaporean brands. Half, however, claim it as their main focus for enhancing the consumer experience, according to the report.

“While brands in Singapore are lagging behind in terms of AI adoption, our findings indicate that this will soon evolve as Singapore, as well as other Asia markets, are well poised for an accelerated uptake amid continued realisation of the direct benefits that generative AI offers and its strong position as a technological hub,” Simon Dale, vice president at Asia for Adobe, said. 

Despite strong consumer preference for AI, 61% of consumers are still concerned about non-consensual use of their personal data and 64% are concerned that too much data will be collected.

Dale said this shows the need for businesses who are going digital to “strategically navigate data privacy and security concerns” to avoid compromising customers’ data.