Our findings reveal that Apac benefits from a unique combination of high engagement and strong optimism, creating a powerful foundation to power up AI adoption. This presents valuable opportunities for Singapore, which shows encouraging signs of being a trailblazer even within this rapidly evolving region.
However, smart business strategy must also recognise the disruption that AI will bring. There are persistent fears of AI replacing human workers and uncertainty around redesign of workflows as businesses struggle to adapt to AI capabilities.
Singapore itself mirrors this parallel picture of opportunity and challenge. It is one of the most advanced AI adopters in the region but still faces deep workforce anxiety and uneven leadership direction.
If Singapore is to take the next step to solidify itself as a regional leader, it must convert AI anxiety into confident, organisation-wide transformation.
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Singapore’s AI adoption is leading the region
Singapore stands out as one of the most advanced adopters of AI in Apac. A significant 84% of employees in Singapore use AI regularly — not only above the global average of 72%, but even higher than the regional norm (78%). This places Singapore among the region’s most active users.
This widespread adoption is not accidental. It reflects Singapore’s long-term investment in digital infrastructure, a pro-innovation policy environment, and a public sector that actively encourages technology-enabled work.
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The country’s leadership mirrors a broader regional trend. Across Apac, 78% of employees report using AI several times a week, with 70% of frontline workers — those in operations, logistics, customer service, and similar roles — integrating AI into their routines. This is a striking contrast to the global average, where just half (51%) of employees actively use AI weekly. This clearly underscores the region’s growing appetite for AI-enabled productivity and efficiency.
The benefits of this AI adoption are tangible. Nearly half of regular AI users say the technology saves them more than an hour each day — time they can reinvest in higher-value tasks such as creativity, strategic thinking, or learning new skills.
High adoption has outpaced transformation
While Singapore’s embrace of AI is broad and deep, the pace of transformation has not kept up with the speed of adoption. Despite high comfort with AI tools, 65% of Singaporean employees fear that AI could threaten their jobs, one of the highest levels of concern in Apac. This paradox underscores a key tension in adoption — using AI daily does not necessarily translate into confidence about the future of work.
The sentiment mirrors a wider regional trend. Across Apac, just over half (52%) of employees express anxiety about AI’s impact on their roles — 11 percentage points higher than the global average — even as overall optimism about technology’s potential remains strong. These concerns are most acute in advanced digital economies such as Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand, where automation and AI adoption are most visible in day-to-day operations.
At the organisational level, transformation in Apac has lagged behind enthusiasm. Only 39% of Singaporean companies report actively redesigning workflows or decision processes to integrate AI, compared with global leaders that allocate around 70% of their AI investments to business process redesign and reinvention. This gap suggests that many organisations are deploying AI within existing structures, rather than rethinking how work itself is organised.
Unless this design focus shifts, Singapore’s impressive adoption curve may plateau before delivering its full productivity potential. Businesses in Singapore need to consider how smart strategy can ensure that AI augments human capabilities in a way that delivers the greatest value while mitigating persistent employee fears.
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Leadership support is improving, but gaps remain
Digital transformation must be supported from the top, and there are encouraging signs that Singapore can build on. Leadership engagement has emerged as a bright spot in Singapore’s AI journey to date. Four in ten frontline employees (40%) say they receive clear guidance from leadership on AI use, notably above the Apac average of 31%. This suggests that many Singaporean organisations are beginning to translate strategic ambition into on-the-ground direction.
At the same time, employee awareness of emerging AI agents is encouragingly high, with 74% of Singaporean workers believing these technologies will be critical to future success. So-called “agentic AI” promises a future where AI not only responds to queries, but has the power to make decisions, plan, and action the results. With rapid early uptake, all signs point to strong momentum ahead for agentic AI.
However, given the potential of agentic AI, it’s concerning that 40% of workers are uncertain how to use these tools effectively. This highlights an important gap that leadership must actively bridge through targeted communication, training, and role modelling.
How Singapore approaches agentic AI could define the next chapter of its digital journey.
As organisations move beyond early experimentation, the next phase of transformation will depend on leaders who can inspire trust, guide change, and equip their people to harness AI confidently and ethically.
Turning enthusiasm into results with AI
Singapore’s AI leadership is established, but the next challenge is turning widespread adoption into deep transformation.
Achieving this ambition means scaling from pilots to process redesign to unlock sustainable productivity and innovation. Crucially, it will also mean transparent communication and targeted reskilling to reassure workers and equip them for new roles as AI reshapes industries.
At the organisational level, stronger leadership alignment and governance are needed to ensure consistent and responsible use of AI. Singapore’s regulatory strength provides a solid base, but greater coordination across sectors will be key to maintaining trust and momentum.
Looking ahead, Singapore and its business ecosystem should prepare to embrace the powerful opportunities of agentic AI. That means building understanding through safe experimentation that familiarises workers while exploring use cases.
Transformation must flow from both the top and the bottom if Singapore is to unlock the greatest value. Leaders should set clear visions, governance, and reskilling at scale, while frontline employees drive innovation from the ground up.
AI isn’t standing still, and Singapore can’t afford to become complacent. With the platform of existing leadership, informed by the right strategic direction, Singapore can get on track to convert digital advantage into lasting economic and social impact.
Romain de Laubier is managing director and senior partner, and Asia Pacific Chair, at BCG X, and Sagar Goel is managing director and partner at BCG.The authors would like to thank Lilian Cheong (Manager, CCI Vantage, BCG), Mayank Kalia (Senior Analyst, CCI Vantage, BCG), Melissa Lou (Product Lead, BCG X), and Filipa Ivanova (Global Product Marketing Manager, BCG X) for contributing their insights to this article
