TLDR: A recent IDC InfoBrief, commissioned by UiPath, reveals that an overwhelming 86% of organizations in Southeast Asia (SEA) are set to implement AI agents within the next 12 months. This significant shift, with 42% already having adopted agentic AI and another 44% planning to, marks 2025 as a crucial year for AI integration across the region, driven by desires for enhanced productivity, accelerated development, and improved service quality.
Southeast Asian businesses are on the cusp of a major technological transformation, with a new survey indicating that 86% of organizations in the region are expected to integrate AI agents into their operations within the next 12 months. This finding comes from a recent IDC InfoBrief titled “Agentic Automation: Unlocking Seamless Orchestration for the Modern Enterprise,” which was commissioned by UiPath.
The survey highlights a rapid acceleration in AI adoption across SEA. Currently, approximately 42% of organizations have already implemented agentic AI, while an additional 44% are actively planning to deploy this technology within the coming year. This collective movement positions 2025 as a pivotal period for the large-scale integration of artificial intelligence in Southeast Asia.
The impetus behind this widespread adoption is multifaceted. Businesses are primarily motivated by the desire to significantly improve employee productivity, accelerate the development of new products, and enhance the overall quality of their products and services. The tangible benefits of agentic AI are already being realized by many, with 75% of SEA organizations reporting that it supports better decision-making, and 72% noting an increase in productivity.
The growing digital transformation across Southeast Asia, coupled with a pressing need for more efficient and autonomous systems, is further fueling the embrace of agentic AI. Key industries leading this charge include financial services, manufacturing, and the retail and wholesale sectors. Organizations in the region also identify several promising use cases for agentic AI in 2025, with customer support automation (58%), risk management and fraud detection (58%), and productivity enhancement (56%) ranking highest.
Despite the rapid pace of adoption, the region faces several challenges in the widespread implementation of AI initiatives. The survey points to AI governance and risk management (22%), a shortage of skilled professionals (18%), and high infrastructure costs (18%) as notable hurdles. Nevertheless, the momentum continues, with about four in five organizations (79%) actively developing potential use cases for agentic AI, even if they haven’t yet made substantial investments.
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- The Evolution of AI: From Chatbots to Autonomous Agents Driving Business Transformation in 2025
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Agentic automation is identified as a critical enabler for AI-powered businesses. This technology allows organizations to seamlessly integrate the power of agentic AI and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) into their existing enterprise workflows, deploying autonomous AI agents to handle complex tasks. This integration promises to unlock new levels of efficiency, scalability, and innovation for businesses across Southeast Asia.
