Southeast Asia AI adoption is helping sustain digital-economy growth, with gross merchandise value forecast to rise 17% to $368 billion in 2026. The projection, published by Google on October 21, 2026, comes from the annual e-Conomy SEA study by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company.
Key Takeaways
- The study forecasts $368 billion in digital-economy gross merchandise value in 2026, up 17% year over year.
- Generative AI is actively used by 243 million people, equivalent to 58% of the region’s working population.
- Further adoption will require more data center capacity, greater energy efficiency and stronger consumer safeguards.
Table of Contents
- Southeast Asia AI adoption expands across digital services
- Consumer trust opens the door to automated purchases
- Infrastructure must keep pace with demand
- Conclusion
Southeast Asia AI adoption expands across digital services
The 2026 e-Conomy SEA findings describe AI as a growth driver across shopping, travel, media, transport and financial services. The study projects that the region’s digital economy will exceed $1 trillion by 2035; that remains a forecast rather than an achieved milestone.
In e-commerce, shoppers are using image-based discovery and in-app assistants to navigate purchases. In travel, generative AI has become the second-most-used tool for planning complex itineraries, behind traditional search engines.
The practical shift is from simply finding information toward helping consumers make decisions and complete transactions. The report links more personalized digital experiences with higher conversions and order volumes, although those findings do not establish a revenue benefit for any particular hardware supplier.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| E-commerce | Projected 2026 GMV of $226 billion, up 18% year over year. |
| Online travel | Projected 2026 GMV of $59 billion, up 10% year over year. |
| Mobility and food delivery | Projected 2026 GMV of $40 billion, up 15% year over year. |
Consumer trust opens the door to automated purchases
The study found that 75% of users expressed willingness to let AI agents compare prices and complete transactions on their behalf. Separately, 62% reported greater trust in AI tools than a year earlier.
That willingness is not the same as completed adoption. Consumers identified privacy safeguards, clear explanations of AI capabilities and the ability to reverse automated transactions as conditions for feeling comfortable with these services.
For digital businesses, the opportunity therefore depends on more than adding an assistant: transaction controls and clear accountability are also part of the adoption challenge.
Infrastructure must keep pace with demand
The report estimates that supporting the projected rise in AI use will require roughly a threefold expansion in regional data center capacity over the next five years. It also identifies more efficient models, improved facility energy efficiency and wider clean-energy access as necessary conditions.
Regional governance is another priority. The announcement points to the upcoming ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement in November 2026 as a framework intended to support cross-border digital trade. Its implementation remains ahead, rather than an already completed source of growth.
Conclusion
The forecast pairs continued digital spending growth with a substantial infrastructure requirement. The next scheduled policy milestone identified in the announcement is the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement in November 2026.
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