2025 has seen the development of AI powered solutions into an increasing number of business domains. As AI continues to change the way businesses operate and face their clients, tech leaders weigh in on how human-AI interactions will evolve.
AI and the customer
As voice AI advances, we are seeing agentic systems capable of making autonomous decisions and engaging in highly natural dialogue. Mandatory disclosure will become a core compliance requirement. Organisations will need clear, explicit identification. Something like, “I am Ruby, [Spokesperson] ‘s Voice AI assistant,” will become standard.
This level of clarity is driven by regulation and by risk management. Concealing AI use exposes companies to reputational damage, customer distrust, and significant legal liability.
In 2026, transparency will transform. It is shifting from an ethical talking point to an enforceable consumer right when engaging with AI services. Clear identification of AI voice agents will be non-negotiable. This will be standard practice across finance, retail, telecom, and government.
The takeaway is clear: Brands that proactively build transparent AI interaction frameworks will gain a competitive edge. Those that attempt to obscure AI use will face regulatory scrutiny and rapidly eroding customer confidence.
- Nicholas Kontopoulos, Vice President of Marketing, Asia Pacific & Japan, Twilio
Far from being regarded as a minor inconvenience, repetition and technical hiccups in AI-human agent transitions are now a major source of frustration among consumers in the region. A recent survey on conversational AI finds that only 14% of human agents in Asia Pacific (APAC) have full context when an AI conversation is escalated, while 65% of handoffs still require customers to repeat some information.
2026 will mark a shift as brands work to close this damaging information gap. Consumers are viewing smooth transitions as tangible proof of a brand’s respect for their time, making seamless AI-to-human handoffs indispensable to maintain trust in the AI era. Based on our recent survey on digital patience, the majority (97%) of consumers in the region value the ability to easily hand off from AI to a human agent when needed.
- Christopher Connolly, Director of Solutions Engineering, Twilio
In 2026, brands may find their identity defined less by their logos or slogans and more by their AI agents. We can envision customizable agents becoming always-on brand ambassadors: intelligent, deeply personalized, and continuously evolving with every single customer interaction.
This could mark a decisive shift in how customers connect with brands. Instead of judging companies by clever taglines, customers might evaluate brands by how their AI agents interact with them. In this new agent-driven reality, the winning brands will be those whose AI interactions feel less like scripted support and more like a genuinely helpful partner.
- Gavin Barfield, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Solutions, Salesforce ASEAN
Predictions of a fully autonomous shopping ecosystem, where AI agents independently manage purchases, overstate how quickly consumers will adopt such behavior. Evidence continues to point to a more gradual, assistive evolution: one where agentic systems enhance research, comparison, and checkout efficiency, but decision-making remains primarily human-led.
Consumers gravitate toward agentic tools when they reduce friction in the shopping journey, such as saving time, simplifying choices, and helping to identify the right products at the right price. By removing barriers, agents can unlock purchases that shoppers may have abandoned previously, effectively expanding overall online shopping rather than shifting it from one channel or another.
These are meaningful gains, but they do not yet signal a shift toward full automation. Today’s LLM platforms are strongest when assisting with research and comparison, while shoppers still want to maintain control over final decisions. As agentic experiences continue to evolve, their uptake will grow in step with how effectively they address these foundational needs.
- Michael Komasinski, CEO, Criteo
AI and employees
Initial fears about AI replacing jobs will evolve into widespread employee enthusiasm as organizations successfully demonstrate that AI augments rather than eliminates roles.
Companies that invest in transparent AI guidelines, clear communication about where AI assists versus where humans lead, and personal development paths showing how employee roles evolve with AI integration will see a shift toward positive employee sentiment toward AI adoption.
Organizations must create comprehensive AI guidelines and regulatory frameworks that clearly define what employees are allowed to do with AI tools and where boundaries exist.
Focus communication on how AI will handle routine tasks while freeing employees for more interesting, creative and strategic work. Develop personal development paths for every employee that show their evolving role alongside AI integration, emphasizing new skills they’ll gain and increased value they’ll provide.
- Kai Werner, CHRO, TeamViewer
By 2026, AI in the meeting room will evolve from an equaliser to a true productivity engine orchestrator. AI is moving beyond basic augmentation to become an intelligent co-pilot that actively orchestrates meeting flows.
Through features like attention management and outcome guidance, AI will drive concrete business results while ensuring visual equity. This shift transforms hardware into a strategic asset, delivering measurable ROI and healthier, inclusive spaces purpose-built for high-impact innovation.
In APAC’s fragmented landscape, where Singapore demands cutting-edge features while Southeast Asian markets require scalable simplicity, AI-powered modular architecture is the non-negotiable solution for consistent collaboration.
- Niko Walraven, Area VP – APAC, Neat
AI capabilities driving finance
AI will move financing into the background of daily operations. Sellers will see working capital offered inside the platforms they already use. A rise in cart sizes or fulfilment velocity will unlock funds without a loan application or a long wait. The process becomes simple and immediate.
Fair access improves as well. Many digital-first businesses lack collateral or lengthy financial records. AI can give them a fair shot by evaluating performance instead of paperwork. The entrepreneurs who move the economy forward will finally have capital that moves with them.
- Percy Hung, Co-Founder & CEO of Choco Up
AI interactions on a regional scale
In 2026, we will see more localisation and relevance of AI innovation to markets in Southeast Asia, with more options available to cater to different purposes. AI innovation has primarily been in English at launch, with a focus on getting the technology working well. As agentic AI becomes more mature, we anticipate that the coming year will see more investments in localising AI to reflect the unique linguistic tapestry that is ASEAN.
AI models fine-tuned with regional linguistic and cultural nuances will deliver more accurate and contextually relevant responses, improving customer experience and making a true business impact in the region. We will also see a variety of LLM options emerge for local businesses, as global LLMs localise and more regional, local, and even industry-specific Small Language models (SLMs) emerge to cater to varying needs.
The availability of local and region-specific AI unlocks a huge opportunity in ASEAN, empowering businesses to solve uniquely local problems.
- Gavin Barfield, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Solutions, Salesforce ASEAN
In 2026, APJ markets that prioritise responsible AI will set the pace for innovation. Governments such as Singapore, India, and Australia have begun introducing regulatory sandboxes and governance frameworks that create room for safe experimentation while maintaining strong security standards.
Enterprises will use these environments to modernise legacy systems, boost developer productivity, and integrate AI more securely across workflows.
In Southeast Asia—where micro, small and medium enterprises constitute the majority of businesses, and may lack in-house technical teams—AI-assisted development tools will allow staff and business owners to build simple apps and automate processes themselves.
Markets that make it safe and simple for these new builders to experiment will capture a disproportionate share of AI-driven productivity and new digital services.
- Marcus Low, Vice President and Managing Director, Asia-Pacific and Japan, Sonar
