TLDR: The US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) hosted its inaugural regional AI workshop in Kuala Lumpur on August 12, 2025, as part of the ASEAN AI Malaysia Summit 2025. The event brought together ASEAN officials, U.S. private sector leaders, and experts to enhance collaboration on responsible AI adoption, build regional capacity, and promote policy harmonization. Key discussions focused on balancing AI innovation with robust governance mechanisms and leveraging AI for digital economic growth.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – The US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) marked a significant step in fostering responsible Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption across Southeast Asia by convening its first regional AI workshop in Kuala Lumpur on August 12, 2025. Held as a key component of the broader ASEAN AI Malaysia Summit 2025, the workshop served as a crucial platform for multistakeholder dialogue and capacity building within ASEAN’s evolving AI landscape.
The workshop gathered a diverse group of participants, including representatives from the ASEAN Working Group on AI Governance and Ethics (WG-AI), senior government officials from eight ASEAN agencies, and prominent U.S. private sector leaders and experts. The primary objective was to strengthen cooperation on responsible AI adoption and to build the necessary capacity within the region to navigate the rapid advancements in AI technology.
Discussions at the workshop highlighted the pivotal role of AI in driving digital growth while simultaneously emphasizing the critical need for sound governance mechanisms. Keynote remarks were delivered by a distinguished panel of speakers, including Mr. Adrian Marcellus, Chief Executive Officer of MyDIGITAL Corporation, Malaysia; H.E. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of ASEAN; Russ Headlee, Senior Bureau Official at the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy; Frederico Costa, AI and Data Policy Lead at Amazon Web Services; and Norman Ng, Head of APAC Trust & Safety Global Engagements (Global Affairs) at Google. These leaders collectively underscored ASEAN’s burgeoning AI potential and the imperative of balancing innovation with responsible governance.
Dr. James Andrade, Singapore Chief Country Representative and Senior ASEAN Advisor of USABC, articulated the vast economic opportunities that AI can unlock, stating, “AI has immense potential to drive digital economic growth and innovation, leading to the creation of new jobs and skill sets. We commend the efforts to help harmonise AI policy throughout the region.”
H.E. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of ASEAN, further elaborated on ASEAN’s proactive stance in AI governance. He noted that ASEAN is developing the ASEAN AI Safety Network (AI Safe), targeted for adoption by the end of 2025, to establish institutionalized mechanisms for sharing best practices and building regional capacity in AI safety, ethics, and governance implementation. Additionally, ASEAN is negotiating legally binding commitments on emerging technologies, including AI, through the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), expected to substantially conclude this year. This agreement aims to create a comprehensive legal foundation for AI security and governance, fostering a trusted, AI-enabled digital ecosystem across the region. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn also highlighted that the 5th ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting (ADGMIN) in January 2025 endorsed the Expanded ASEAN AI Guide and the ASEAN Responsible AI Roadmap, providing member states with a framework aligned with international best practices.
The session specifically focused on concrete examples of implementing responsible AI in the face of rapid technological advancements. On the sidelines of the summit, USABC engaged in bilateral meetings with Malaysian digital economy leaders, including Mr. Adrian Marcellus, Tuan Fabian Bigar (Secretary General, Ministry of Digital, Malaysia), and Russ Headlee.
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The workshop received support from leading technology companies such as Amazon Web Services, Google, Meta, Salesforce, and Qualcomm. This collaboration reinforced USABC’s steadfast commitment to supporting ASEAN’s AI ambitions, advancing responsible AI adoption, and promoting greater policy harmonization across the region. The event underscores a collective effort to ensure that AI development in Southeast Asia is not only innovative but also ethical, secure, and inclusive.
