Singapore, the Most AI-Ready East Asian Nation

In East Asia, Singapore is the most prepared country to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) for public services.

This is evident from the Government AI Readiness Index 2024 report released by the global business consulting firm, Oxford Insights.

Here's a breakdown of the government readiness scores in East Asian countries to adopt AI in 2024:

1. Singapore: 84.25

2. South Korea: 79.98

3. Japan: 75.75

4. Taiwan: 74.58

5. China: 72.01

6. Malaysia: 71.4

7. Thailand: 66.17

8. Indonesia: 65.85

9. Vietnam: 61.42

10. Philippines: 58.51

11. Brunei Darussalam: 55.45

12. Mongolia: 42.36

13. Papua New Guinea: 36.85

14. Cambodia: 36.63

15. Laos: 36.08

16. Myanmar: 34.26

17. Timor Leste: 33.68

Oxford Insights assessed government readiness to adopt AI based on three main assessment pillars:

1. Government Capacity: Government vision on AI, AI governance and ethics, the government's ability to adapt effectively, and government digital capacity.
2. Data and Infrastructure: Availability of data representative of the national population, data availability for AI training, and supporting AI infrastructure.
3. Technology Sector: Capacity for innovation, human resources, and maturity of the AI technology industry.

All these assessment pillars are then processed into a score on a scale of 0-100 points. The higher the score, the more prepared the government is assumed to be in using AI for public services.

According to Oxford Insights, the readiness to adopt AI in East Asian countries is generally higher than the global average, which scored 47.59 points.

"Its main strength lies in government capacity, where East Asia has a regional average score of 84.71 points, indicating a strong governance framework and a strategic AI vision," wrote Oxford Insights in its report.

The readiness of data and supporting AI infrastructure in East Asia is also generally quite good, with a regional average score of 69.72 points, higher than the global average score of 59.62 points.

However, East Asia generally still faces challenges in the technology sector, with a regional average score of 44.61 points.

According to Oxford Insights, this indicates the need for further investment to drive innovation and maturity of the AI industry.