The Council’s first regional AI workshop brought together ASEAN officials, U.S. private sector leaders, and experts to strengthen cooperation on responsible AI adoption.
Kuala Lumpur, 12 August 2025 — The US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) convened its first regional AI workshop in Kuala Lumpur as part of the ASEAN AI Malaysia Summit 2025, marking an important step in fostering responsible AI adoption across the region.
The workshop, which gathered representatives from the ASEAN Working Group on AI Governance and Ethics (WG-AI), senior government officials from eight agencies, and U.S. private sector leaders, was designed to build capacity and promote multistakeholder dialogue on ASEAN’s AI landscape. The event highlighted the role of AI in driving digital growth while addressing the need for sound governance mechanisms.
Keynote remarks were delivered by Mr. Adrian Marcellus, Chief Executive Officer of MyDIGITAL Corporation, Malaysia; H.E. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of ASEAN; Russ Headlee, Senior Bureau Official at the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy; Frederico Costa, AI and Data Policy Lead at Amazon Web Services; and Norman Ng, Head of APAC Trust & Safety Global Engagements (Global Affairs) at Google. They underscored ASEAN’s growing AI potential and the importance of balancing innovation with responsible governance.
Speaking at the event, Dr. James Andrade, Singapore Chief Country Representative and Senior ASEAN Advisor of USABC, highlighted the economic opportunities AI can unlock: “AI has immense potential to drive digital economic growth and innovation, leading to the creation of new jobs and skill sets. We commend the efforts to help harmonise AI policy throughout the region.”
The programme concluded with a panel discussion featuring regional policymakers and technology leaders, including Justin Hong (Infocomm Media Development Authority, Singapore), Bryan Yeoh (Malaysia Centre4IR, MyDIGITAL Corporation), Clara Koh (Meta), Janitra Haryanto (Salesforce), and Nies Purwati (Qualcomm International, Inc). The session focused on concrete examples of implementing responsible AI in the face of rapid technological advancements.
On the sidelines of the summit, USABC held bilateral meetings with Malaysian digital economy leaders, including Mr. Adrian Marcellus, Tuan Fabian Bigar (Secretary General, Ministry of Digital, Malaysia), and Russ Headlee.
Supported by Amazon Web Services, Google, Meta, Salesforce, and Qualcomm, the workshop reinforced USABC’s commitment to supporting ASEAN’s AI ambitions, advancing responsible AI adoption, and promoting greater policy harmonisation across the region.
