Chatbots: Automating customer service in ASEAN

In Southeast Asia, e-commerce is big business, with Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand generating US$14.8 billion in online sales throughout 2016. According to a 2019 study from Facebook and Bain & Company, ASEAN's digital consumers' spending will triple by 2025. Within the e-commerce sector, online retailers are already embracing artificial intelligence (AI) applications such as chatbots, to deliver a more personal experience for shoppers online. According to a 2018 article by Rene Millman titled'Adoption of AI booming in Southeast Asia,' the adoption rate of AI in the region grew to 14 percent in 2018. The article, citing an IDC report'Asia Pacific Enterprise Cognitive/AI Survey,' revealed that 37 percent of companies would put AI adoption plans in place in the next five years.