A new study released today by digital travel platform Agoda shows that artificial intelligence (AI) adoption is nearly universal, with 95% of developers across Southeast Asia and India using it weekly. Moreover, more than half (56%) keep an AI assistant open at all times.
“Artificial intelligence is reshaping how developers across Southeast Asia and India build, learn, and collaborate,” said Idan Zalzberg, chief technology officer at Agoda. “What began as a way to speed up tasks like writing, testing, or debugging code has grown into a broader shift in how software is built. Today, AI helps teams move faster, learn continuously, and solve problems in new ways.
Responsible and effective AI experience
The study found that 71% of developers are self-taught by learning through tutorials, side projects, or online communities. Only 28% receive employer-led training. Developers in Singapore are almost twice as likely as those in Vietnam to have formal AI training programs.
Most (87%) have adjusted their learning or career plans to leverage AI, and 62% expect it to expand career opportunities, revealing a trend where the workforce learns faster than organisations can train.
“In this region, AI use is mainstream but still uneven. Developers are approaching AI with pragmatism—accelerating work, maintaining quality, and experimenting thoughtfully rather than replacing skill or judgment. The real opportunity lies in supporting this ground-up maturity with structured practices and responsible experimentation, turning high adoption into consistent, lasting capability,” Zalzberg added.
This research was conducted via an online survey between August and September 2025, gathering responses from over 600 developers across seven key markets in Southeast Asia and India: Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, and India.
