SAP APAC President Verena Siow reports that Southeast Asian businesses are rapidly adopting AI-native cloud systems to bypass legacy infrastructure and accelerate digital transformation across the growing regional market.

Key Points

• SAP APAC President Verena Siow identifies Southeast Asia as a high-growth region for AI adoption due to its lack of legacy IT infrastructure.
• Regional firms including ComfortDelGro, Thai Airlines, and Singapore Airlines are early adopters of SAP’s integrated business AI and cloud platforms.
• A November study by SAP and Oxford Economics found Singaporean firms spend an average of $14.5 million annually on AI with a 16% return on investment.
• Siow disputes the "SaaS-pocalypse" theory, arguing that large enterprises require established software platforms to maintain data security and governance.
• SAP launched a new business AI platform in May to help companies scale AI integration and move away from piecemeal pilot projects.

Why it Matters

The rapid adoption of cloud-native AI in Southeast Asia signals a significant shift in how emerging markets modernize their business operations compared to mature economies. By prioritizing scalable platforms over legacy systems, these companies are setting a new standard for enterprise efficiency and digital agility in the global market.