Most Asia-Pacific entrepreneurs see AI driving growth: UBS

Globally, about 67 per cent of respondents said they would use AI to improve productivity, while 46 per cent would use it to cut headcount

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People gathered on The Bund in Shanghai with the city’s financial district in the background. Photo: Reuters

Published: 8:06pm, 6 Feb 2025

Most entrepreneurs in the Asia-Pacific region see huge potential in artificial intelligence (AI) and said they would be willing to invest in it, according to a report published by UBS on Thursday.

Around 66 per cent of entrepreneurs in the region believe AI offers the best opportunity to drive business growth, compared with 59 per cent in the Americas and Europe. In Switzerland, which is listed as one of the four regions in the survey, the figure was 70 per cent. The Swiss bank surveyed 156 entrepreneurs from around the world last year; 21 per cent of the respondents were located in the Asia-Pacific region.

Respondents said they viewed AI as the most substantial commercial opportunity, according to Vishakha Rajput, the head of the entrepreneurs segment at UBS Global Wealth Management. On average, 62 per cent of those surveyed globally said they would consider AI as the technology that offered the greatest opportunity.

About 67 per cent of the respondents globally said they would use AI to improve productivity, while 46 per cent would use it to reduce headcount. In the Asia-Pacific region, those figures rose to 75 and 66 per cent.

“AI is one of the top-of-mind topics among APAC entrepreneurs today, especially for its potential to deliver higher business productivity,” said Sundeep Gantori, a global technology equity strategist at UBS Global Wealth Management CIO APAC.

In total, 50 per cent of entrepreneurs in the Asia-Pacific region said they would invest in AI infrastructure and applications.