Note: The article is originally from DeepTech Times.
For all the talk of AI transforming economies, much of the conversation in APAC still centres on large enterprises, cloud giants and national AI strategies. Yet across Southeast Asia, the real test of AI’s promise lies elsewhere: among microbusinesses and SMEs (MSMEs) that form the backbone of ASEAN’s economy.
According to Jeslin Bay, group CEO of BlackStorm Consulting, the challenge is not a lack of interest in AI among MSMEs but a mismatch between ambition and reality.
“AI adoption is not a single journey in ASEAN,” Bay explains. “It varies widely depending on infrastructure, digital maturity and even how MSMEs define ‘data’ in the first place.”
A fragmented starting line
The ASEAN MSME landscape spans from digitally native founders running cross-border e-commerce operations to family-run food stalls operating largely on intuition rather than analytics. This diversity, Bay argues, is often overlooked by AI programmes designed with large enterprises in mind.
In some markets, the barrier is basic digital infrastructure. In others, it is AI literacy or the assumption that AI must be complex, expensive or disruptive to existing operations.
“Some business owners already collect data, but they do it informally by observation or gut feel,” Bay says. “Before you talk about AI, you need to talk about digital foundations and data discipline.”
This is why BlackStorm’s approach resists one-size-fits-all frameworks. Instead, it begins with localisation: adapting training, tools and deployment strategies to each market’s realities.
Designing AI for MSMEs
Through its involvement in Project Asia Data, part of the broader AI for MSME Advancement in ASEAN (AIM ASEAN) initiative, BlackStorm has helped shape a regional AI curriculum across all ASEAN member states.
AIM ASEAN is a two-year regional initiative by the ASEAN Foundation, under the AI Opportunity Fund: APAC, in collaboration with AVPN and supported by Google and the Asian Development Bank. The initiative recognises that scalable AI adoption must be modular, accessible and practical, and aims to empower 100,000 MSMEs across all 10 ASEAN member states.
In Singapore, this takes the form of short, time-efficient modules, most delivered online, with one in-person session designed to foster peer learning and collaboration.
“SME leaders are busy,” Bay notes. “If training takes too long or feels academic, it simply won’t be adopted.”
Crucially, the programme also differentiates between AI beginners and more advanced adopters, offering self-paced tools, curated resources and practical demonstrations, from GenAI for content creation to tools like Google NotebookLM. The emphasis is not mastery, but confidence.
The power of partnerships
Cost remains the most common objection MSMEs raise when discussing AI. Many still associate AI with robotics, heavy automation or enterprise-scale investments. Yet Bay sees a growing shift. Increasingly, SMEs are exploring AI because clients, partners or regulators expect it.
“The pressure is coming from the ecosystem,” she says. “MSMEs are being asked to show AI capability even if it starts small.”
This is where partnerships matter. Governments, industry associations, universities and technology providers can reduce risk by pooling resources and creating shared platforms for experimentation. In some cases, SMEs are not just adopters but also partners and distributors of AI solutions entering ASEAN markets.
BlackStorm itself often acts as a bridge, helping non-English-speaking tech firms from markets such as Korea, Taiwan and Japan localise their solutions for ASEAN, while enabling local SMEs to become implementation or channel partners.
“It creates new revenue streams,” Bay explains. “AI isn’t just about efficiency. It’s about opportunity.”
From theory to tangible gains
Across the region, Bay has seen AI move decisively beyond pilots. In Thailand, for example, BlackStorm helped technology providers navigate relationship-driven public sector environments, compressing months of market entry into weeks through local presence and cultural fluency.
Elsewhere, AI is being used to automate marketing, improve lead generation and support multilingual customer engagement, particularly valuable in ASEAN’s fragmented linguistic landscape.
Perhaps most striking is how SMEs measure success.
“They don’t ask whether AI saves time,” Bay says. “They ask whether it helps them make more money.”
That commercial pragmatism is shaping adoption patterns, with many SMEs white-labelling AI-enabled services or reselling solutions once deployed internally.
Trust and the data question
As AI use expands, concerns around data protection, ethics and governance are rising, especially among smaller firms with limited compliance resources.
Bay’s advice is pragmatic rather than prescriptive. Responsible AI for MSMEs starts with understanding what data should never be shared, setting internal boundaries on access and recognising the risks of hallucination and misinformation.
“Don’t take AI output at face value,” she warns. “Ask for sources. Check assumptions. Treat AI as an assistant, not an authority.”
In markets like Singapore, where data protection laws are strict, governance becomes existential. A single compliance failure, Bay notes, can cripple a small business.
Despite fears of job displacement, Bay observes that most MSME leaders are cautiously pro-AI. They may hesitate over cost or complexity, but few want to be left behind.
“The real barrier isn’t technology,” she says. “It’s mindset.”
Successful adoption depends on leadership willingness to let go of legacy thinking and champion change from the top. This is especially challenging in sectors with thin margins, such as food and beverage, where experimentation feels risky.
What comes next for ASEAN MSMEs
Looking ahead, Bay sees AI agents, multilingual commerce tools, AI-enabled recruitment and cross-border digital services as key opportunity areas. But she cautions that sophistication must follow readiness.
“Agentic AI is powerful but not everyone is ready for it,” she says. “Start simple. Build confidence. Scale responsibly.”
In ASEAN’s MSME economy, AI’s future will not be defined by grand national strategies alone. It will be shaped by thousands of small, practical decisions about tools, trust and transformation. And for those willing to start where they are, rather than where the hype says they should be, AI may yet become the great equaliser ASEAN has been waiting for.