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SEA digital economy to top $1t by 2035: report

Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company said in their e-Conomy SEA 2026 report that Southeast Asia’s digital economy will reach US$368 billion in gross merchandise value in 2026 and exceed US$1 trillion by 2035.

The report said AI is helping sustain growth despite macroeconomic pressure.

The report said 243 million people in Southeast Asia have adopted generative AI, or 58% of the region’s working population.

However, AI use per person remains below US levels, and enterprise adoption could still grow.

Private funding for digital applications has stabilised at about US$8 billion a year, the report said.

Companies with AI at the core of their products captured 80% of deal value in the past six months.

Regional AI use could increase by as much as 60x by 2030.

The available search extracts did not show how these figures compare with earlier forecasts.

They also did not clarify which countries and sectors the gross merchandise value estimate covers, or the broader policy and operational barriers to enterprise AI adoption.

🔗 Source: Google

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