Promoting safe, responsible and effective AI in the Pacific and Southeast Asia

HTI is partnering with the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) to promote safe, responsible and effective AI in the Southeast Asia and Pacific regions, in ways that meet their needs.

Like Australia, these two regions are at a critical juncture in AI adoption: AI presents transformative opportunities for development, but states often lack the regulatory and governance frameworks, reliable access to critical infrastructure, technical capacity and resources to ensure the benefits are enjoyed equally by all.

HTI is working collaboratively with experts from government, civil society and industry in these regions to better understand:

• priorities for the development and deployment of AI for countries in the Southeast Asia and Pacific regions
• barriers to safe, responsible and effective AI, and
• practical steps that can support our shared aims.

Project launch – AI Action Summit in Paris, February 2025

This project was launched during the AI Action Summit in Paris in February 2025, where HTI convened two major events with the Australian Government.

The first event comprised a roundtable of leading experts who discussed ways in which infrastructure, policy and capability-building  can better support governments, civil society and industry across the Asia-Pacific to develop and adopt AI in safe, responsible and effective ways.

The second event, an official AI Summit side event co-hosted by the Australian and Malaysian Governments, involved senior government, civil society and industry leaders drawing on the expert roundtable findings to identify the priority actions, investment and regulatory settings required to unlock transformative benefits of AI equitably and safely.

Consultation and engagement with Southeast Asia and Pacific regions

Following the AI Action Summit, the project has focused on consultation and engagement in the Southeast Asia and Pacific regions. HTI has carried out research and conducted over 16 consultations  with key stakeholder groups. 

HTI is developing a Discussion Paper which will present key priorities and challenges faced by the regions for advancing safe, responsible and effective AI and outline critical actions for addressing those priorities. Feedback on this paper will be sought at the Pacific and Southeast Asia AI Dialogue in San Francisco in late April, hosted by HTI and DFAT on the margins of the RSA Conference. 

Final Roadmap Development

The Project  will culminate in July with the development of a roadmap for DFAT’s future capacity-building for sustainable and locally appropriate approaches to AI in the Southeast Asia and Pacific regions.