The use of artificial intelligence (AI) across Southeast Asia is accelerating faster than governments, schools, and institutions can keep pace with, with 75% of students using AI in the Philippines, according to studies released by the Asean Foundation.
“Across Asean, we are seeing AI use grow faster than our systems’ ability to guide it,” said Asean Foundation executive director Piti Srisangnam.
The Asean Foundation released the Asean Digital Outlook and the first look of AI Ready Asean Research during the Regional Policy Convening in Manila on Feb. 9.
“These studies move the conversation beyond whether AI is being used to whether our institutions, educators, and communities are truly prepared,” Srisangnam said, adding:
“Evidence like this is essential to designing policies that protect trust, strengthen skills, and ensure AI benefits people, not just economies.”
The studies were released as Asean’s digital economy is projected to grow from $300 billion to $1 trillion by 2030.
The 11-member Asean (or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) covers about 660 million people, nearly one-third of whom are under the age of 20.
Several Asean members have made progress in strengthening digital infrastructure, but the studies point out that the levels of digital maturity and institutional capacity across the region are uneven.
According to the studies, 83.40% of students and 73.07% of educators reportedly use generative AI models across education communities in the Philippines, with 75.95% of students and 42.21% of educators using AI for writing and paraphrasing.
Despite high adoption, fewer than half of educators said they have strong confidence in existing institutional policies or government regulations for AI.
The Asean Foundation said the studies showed “digital adoption is advancing faster than institutional, ethical, and community readiness.”
It pointed out that while students are the most active users of AI tools, educators and parents showed lower confidence and literacy.
It also said that growing risks, including online scams, deepfake-enabled fraud, misinformation, and data breaches, are undermining trust in digital systems.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the Philippines is “rolling out decisive reforms to integrate AI into basic education.”
These reforms include the AI Ready Asean Philippines Training Programme for learners, teachers, and parents, led by the Asean Foundation with support from Google.org, he said in a statement.
Angara also said the Department of Education (DepEd) is co-developing a national AI curriculum with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Day of AI.
At the launch of DepEd’s Project AGAP.AI earlier this month, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said: “Our responsibility now is to ensure that our students use AI confidently and ethically, enabling them to stay ahead in their learning journey.”
The President added: “Technology cannot replace discipline. It cannot replace effort. It cannot replace the habit of showing up prepared and ready to learn. It cannot replace hard work.” CS
