Southeast Asian workers are adopting artificial intelligence in their personal lives more quickly than many employers are ready for, according to a survey conducted by YouGov on behalf of Salesforce.
Among the 4,062 knowledge workers in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines surveyed, 66% say using AI personally makes them trust workplace AI tools more. Sixty-nine per cent say it boosted their confidence in using AI at work.
These results show that AI adoption at work is now often driven by employees themselves. Many are trying out AI on their own, while companies are slower to offer training, approved tools, and clear guidelines for safe and effective use.
This gap is turning into a management challenge. Although 75% of knowledge workers in Asean have used agentic AI at work, only 32% said their company trains them to use it. Just 26% reported that their employer invests in forums or tools for sharing AI knowledge, and only 23% said managers are encouraged to show their teams how to use AI.
Singapore faces similar challenges even with its advanced digital economy. The survey found that 19.9% of knowledge workers in the city-state said they had not used agentic AI, suggesting up to 80% may already be using it. Still, 42% want a better understanding of the skills they need for the AI era, matching the Asean average.
The risk is that workers will keep advancing even if their employers do not. Salesforce warns that without approved, enterprise-grade AI tools, employees might use unapproved apps outside of the company's control, which could expose sensitive data and increase the risk of mistakes or compliance issues.
See also: Why the plumbing should come before AI agents
"While the growing trust in AI across Asean is being driven from personal curiosity, individual use alone doesn't translate to enterprise-scale impact and trusted business outcomes. For businesses, this is a clear signal to move: our workforce is ready, but it is up to organisations to provide the secure, enterprise-grade frameworks and skills support that turns personal use of AI into a coordinated engine for growth and innovation in the Agentic Enterprise," says Paul Carvouni, Salesforce's senior vice president and general manager for Asean.
The survey challenges the idea that only younger workers are adopting AI at work. Gen Z leads in AI use across Asean, but by only four percentage points on average over Millennials and Gen X. Gen X workers are also more likely to see AI agents as tools that help them work beyond their usual expertise, with 37% saying so, compared to 30% of Millennials and 29% of Gen Z.
In Singapore, over half of Gen Z workers use AI at work daily, compared to 39% of Millennials and 32% of Gen X. However, older workers are still more likely to view AI agents as a way to expand their expertise, with 32% of Gen X respondents saying this, compared to 28% of Millennials and 26% of Gen Z.
The pressure on companies goes beyond just improving productivity. Workers' personal use of AI is also raising their expectations as customers. Across Asean, 46% now expect faster and more efficient service from businesses, and 45% want greater accuracy and fewer mistakes. Only 9% said their expectations have not changed.
