Gone are the days when artificial intelligence (AI) was regulated by the engineers who built it.

Growing concern over the risks associated with AI has led governments such as Singapore’s to prioritise effective regulation alongside rapid adoption.

Singapore is in a unique position, with both a tech-savvy workforce and ubiquitous digital infrastructure. Its neighbours in the ASEAN region are among the fastest-growing digital economies in the world.

Singapore is already one of the global first movers in AI safety and governance. It remains to be seen whether this can translate into wider regional governance of a fast-moving technology, a concern shared by leaders across ASEAN.

The Landscape of Singapore’s AI Governance

Singapore has emerged as a regional AI hub, and the country has no intention of slowing down.

With SGD 37 billion pledged to AI investment, the scale of that commitment has been matched by the fast-paced construction of a governance architecture.

As early as 2023, Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Commission had set out a framework and toolkit for AI testing, the first of its kind anywhere.

The more recent global turn towards agentic AI systems has led to new governance frameworks.

In May, Minister Josephine Teo announced the Infocomm Media Development Authority’s Model AI Governance Framework for Agentic AI. The framework was subsequently updated with a stronger emphasis on regulation and safety, drawing additional attention to the risks posed by agentic systems and to end-user responsibility.

The key observation here is that frameworks are being used rather than hard and non-negotiable laws. AI technology is evolving at a rapid rate, and the acceptable limits of its development and application remain an unresolved debate.

Scaling AI Governance to Southeast Asia

ASEAN’s own efforts are gathering pace.

Taking a lead from the European Union’s AI Act, the bloc has begun coordinating its data protection authorities.

At the ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting in January 2026, members adopted the Hanoi Declaration, which set out continued cooperation on both capacity building and safety governance.

Negotiations on the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement advanced at the Second Meeting of the 57th ASEAN Senior Economic Officials Meeting in Manila in May 2026, with signature expected in November.

There is a present need for urgent oversight in the region. The region already contends with a substantial online scam industry, and without a more anticipatory approach to regulation, AI risks compounding a problem that is already difficult to contain.

There is thankfully common ground to be found in AI safety. While research and development has bred competition, safety has proved a site of cooperation, and open-weight models in particular have drawn shared attention.

The development of stronger oversight nevertheless opens new strategic questions for the region to confront. As ASEAN’s regulatory capacity develops, it will find itself increasingly exposed to a rivalry in which the competing AI powers regard each other’s infrastructure as a security concern.

Chinese influence in the global AI industry is rising quickly through the sudden and innovative development and release of open-weight models. Chinese models accounted for around 30 per cent of global usage by the end of 2025, up from 13 per cent at the start of that year.

The rise of open-weight governance connects the neighbouring ASEAN region directly to the global expansion of Chinese AI.

Alignment on governance would allow ASEAN to make better use of its own advantages within a rapidly growing digital economy, as competition around AI technology continues to intensify.

Lessons for Diplomats

The diplomatic consequences of cross-regional AI alignment, or its neglect, are likely to affect the relative strength of an entire region’s AI sovereignty.

A region united on the same principles would negotiate from a stronger position than ten states arriving separately at the same table, and would be better placed to set the terms of engagement rather than accept those offered to it.

Singapore assumes the ASEAN chairmanship in 2027. The initiative will soon fall to Singapore to persuade the rest of the region to move collectively, and there has not been a better opportunity to align Southeast Asia on a shared AI agenda.

While Singapore is already ahead in AI development, it’s leaders are at pains to acquire a stronger understanding of what the technology can do.

Perhaps this is best reflected in the practice of Singapore’s chief diplomat, Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.

Dr Balakrishnan recently showcased a personal AI agent that he developed himself in May. He made the fair point that leaders who wish to discuss AI should understand how it works in practice.

Diplomats would be wise to follow his advice.