Salesforce research highlights a decisive shift in how AI adoption is taking root across ASEAN workplaces, with personal use emerging as the primary catalyst for trust, confidence and enterprise readiness.
Personal AI use drives workplace trust
According to a new Salesforce-commissioned survey conducted by YouGov, 66% of knowledge workers across ASEAN say their personal use of AI has increased their trust in using it at work, while 69% report higher confidence levels. The study surveyed 4,062 respondents across Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.
This bottom-up adoption trend is particularly pronounced among Gen Z, where 72% report high confidence in AI and 69% express strong trust. Notably, only 3% of respondents expect never to use AI agents at work, underscoring the near-universal trajectory towards AI-enabled roles.
Skills gap threatens enterprise value
Despite strong momentum, the findings reveal a widening gap between enthusiasm and organisational readiness. While 75% of workers have already interacted with agentic AI, only 32% say their companies provide training on how to use such tools.
Investment in knowledge-sharing remains limited, with just 26% reporting access to peer-learning forums and 23% seeing leadership actively model AI usage. This disconnect risks fuelling “shadow AI”, where employees turn to unapproved tools, potentially exposing organisations to data security and compliance risks.
“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,” said Paul Carvouni, senior vice president and general manager, Salesforce ASEAN.
“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.” Paul Carvouni
Human-AI collaboration becomes core skill
Looking ahead, 35% of respondents expect AI agents to both automate and augment their work, while 28% identify human-to-AI collaboration as a critical future capability. Workers cite transparency (43%), access to high-quality approved tools (42%), and clearer skills development pathways (42%) as key enablers of confidence.
The research also challenges assumptions about generational divides. While Gen Z leads in adoption, Millennials and Gen X trail by only four percentage points, with Gen X workers more likely to view AI as a means to extend their expertise.
Rising expectations in an AI-first economy
Beyond the workplace, personal AI use is reshaping customer expectations. Nearly half (46%) of respondents expect faster service, 45% demand greater accuracy, and 41% anticipate more intelligent, innovative offerings from businesses.
Carvouni added: “To succeed in the AI era, companies should see AI not just as a technology investment, but as a people transformation… AI fluency across the region is what will transform AI from a mere technology innovation into an economic advantage for ASEAN.”
