Talent shortages holding back Thailand's AI adoption

The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) by Thai enterprises remains at the early to mid-stage, attributed to limited Al talent, fragmented data, narrow governance frameworks, and an unclear return on investment (ROI), says tech firm Lenovo.

- SUCHIT LEESA-NGUANSUK

"Thailand is a strategically important market for Lenovo in Asia-Pacific with a fast-growing digital infrastructure, strong entrepreneurial ecosystem, and government support for the Industry 4.0 approach and AI adoption," Sumir Bhatia, president for Asia-Pacific in the Infrastructure Solutions Group of Lenovo, told the Bangkok Post.

He said enterprise Al adoption in Southeast Asia is accelerating and Thailand is advancing steadily, behind some other markets in the region.

Lenovo's CIO Playbook 2025 revealed 68% of organisations in Southeast Asia use hybrid or on-premise AI infrastructure, focusing on performance, security and compliance to enhance productivity and competitiveness.

Many enterprises are still exploring due to AI talent gaps, fragmented data, weak governance, and unclear ROI, all slowing large-scale AI rollout, noted the firm.

Despite these gaps, momentum is building. With sustained investment, supportive policies and enterprise commitment, Thailand is well-positioned to accelerate its Al journey, said Mr Bhatia.

Lenovo is promoting its "Smarter Al for All" vision in Thailand through purpose-built, AI-ready infrastructure that extends from the edge to the cloud, he said.