AI is reshaping how developers learn, grow, and navigate their careers, and the latest Agoda AI Developer Report 2025 makes that shift impossible to ignore. The findings show a regional workforce leveling up at unprecedented speed, often without institutional support. Developers are teaching themselves AI faster than many companies can roll out structured training, accelerating innovation while widening gaps in access and preparedness.

The report, based on responses from developers across Southeast Asia and India, captures a clear trend: AI is now the center of career strategy. Eighty-seven percent of developers have changed their learning priorities because of AI, and 62% believe it will create more opportunities than it replaces. Yet most of this growth is happening independently. Seventy-two percent are self-taught, while only 28% receive employer-backed training.

This divide reflects a broader issue. Organizations are struggling to keep pace with the fast-moving expectations of AI-driven work. As companies ramp up internal education, many developers have already built their own pathways—leaning heavily on open-source communities, online platforms, and peer-driven experimentation.

Peer Learning Is Winning Where Formal Training Lags

With traditional programs unable to scale quickly, developers are turning to decentralized learning. More than 52% now rely on online communities or open-source projects as their primary AI education hubs. This shift fuels a culture built on rapid experimentation, shared code, and distributed problem-solving.

However, momentum varies across the region. Access to formal training differs significantly by geography. Developers in Singapore are almost twice as likely to receive structured AI education compared to those in Vietnam. Senior engineers also report far higher confidence than juniors, revealing a 25-point experience gap that mentorship and structured training could address.

These disparities hint at a future where AI skills become a differentiator not only between companies but across entire economies.

AI Skills Are Becoming a Baseline Requirement

The speed of AI adoption also brings new pressures. Forty-four percent of developers worry they may fall behind, given how quickly tools evolve. Meanwhile, 58% believe AI proficiency has already become a standard hiring requirement.

As a result, the regional developer ecosystem is more ambitious, adaptable, and self-sufficient—but also under strain. Developers are moving fast, but without consistent guidance, the path becomes uneven.

Idan Zalzberg, Chief Technology Officer at Agoda, explains the dynamic clearly. Developers see AI as an accelerator, not a replacement. Yet they are upskilling faster than many organizations can react. Zalzberg emphasizes the need for companies to establish systems of trust and accountability if they want to harness this momentum effectively.

Agoda's Playbook: Build Trust, Enable Experimentation

Agoda is investing heavily in those systems. The company has created an internal ecosystem designed to support ongoing AI education and experimentation.

Its initiatives include:

• Internal AI hackathons that encourage hands-on exploration

• Regular tech talks and knowledge-sharing sessions to expand peer learning

• Tech Camp Day, a social impact program that has provided thousands of Thai students with essential tech skills

These efforts help strengthen both Agoda’s engineering teams and the broader tech communities where the company operates. The focus is on long-term capability building, not short-term skill spikes.

A Regional Snapshot of AI Adoption

The AI Developer Report 2025 also includes insight from leading regional companies such as Carousell, MoMo, Omise, and SCB 10x. Together, their input reveals a rapidly evolving ecosystem shaped by grassroots learning as much as enterprise adoption.

Developers across Southeast Asia and India are integrating AI into their work faster than ever. While this speed fuels innovation, it also exposes gaps between those with access to structured training and those without. If companies want to build resilient, future-ready tech teams, they will need to close those gaps.

For now, the message is clear: developers aren’t waiting for permission. They’re already building the AI future themselves.

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Pony.ai is pushing its Robotaxi ambitions into higher gear. The autonomous mobility company has expanded its partnership with Sunlight Mobility to adopt a fully asset-light model—an approach designed to scale faster, deploy more efficiently, and cut the capital demands that usually weigh down autonomous fleet operators.

The move builds on a collaboration first formed in mid-2024. With the new agreement, Sunlight Mobility will fund Pony.ai’s Gen-7 Robotaxi vehicles, with the first batch set to roll out in Guangzhou by the end of 2025. This marks a notable shift: instead of owning every car in its fleet, Pony.ai is leaning into a model where third parties finance the vehicles and lease Pony.ai’s Virtual Driver technology for commercial operations.

It’s a bet on scalability. And the market seems ready for it. More external partners are showing interest in funding autonomous fleets, a sign that confidence in the Robotaxi business model is rising—particularly in China’s highly competitive mobility sector.

Sunlight Mobility’s Scale Powering Pony.ai’s Strategy

Sunlight Mobility operates one of China’s largest digital mobility platforms, spanning more than 180 cities. It brings user demand, operational expertise, and dispatch intelligence—key ingredients that autonomous fleet operators often struggle to build quickly.

By integrating their platforms, Pony.ai and Sunlight Mobility will jointly manage autonomous vehicle supply and share economic upside. The result aims to be a more efficient, more responsive Robotaxi network that benefits both companies and, ideally, the passengers they serve.

This collaboration also strengthens Pony.ai’s long-term roadmap. A capital-light approach could help the company deploy fleets at a pace that would be difficult with traditional ownership models, especially as the autonomous mobility landscape matures into a race defined by speed, funding leverage, and regulatory readiness.

The broader implications reach beyond Pony.ai itself. As more mobility players adopt asset-light models, the economics of Robotaxi deployment could shift dramatically—lowering barriers for scale and making the technology more commercially viable in more cities.

For now, Pony.ai and Sunlight Mobility are setting their sights on expansion across China after the initial Guangzhou launch. If the partnership delivers on its promise, this could signal a new phase in the rollout of autonomous transportation: faster, leaner, and increasingly decentralized.

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R Systems has vaulted into the top tier of UiPath’s global partner ecosystem, securing Diamond Partner status and recognition as a UiPath Agentic Automation Fast Track Partner. The dual milestone positions the company among an elite group leading the charge in AI-powered enterprise automation.

The announcement reflects two parallel trends shaping the automation market: the rise of agentic AI and the growing value of partners who can operationalize it. While many enterprises are still experimenting with task-level automation, UiPath and its top partners are pushing into a world where AI agents, robots, models, and human expertise work together to automate entire business processes end-to-end.

Agentic Automation: Early Access, Early Advantage

The Fast Track designation is limited to UiPath partners trained directly in agentic automation capabilities—an emerging class of automation powered by autonomous AI agents that can sense, decide, and act across workflows. R Systems earned early access, identified customer-ready use cases, and contributed feedback to UiPath’s ongoing development efforts.

This places the company ahead of the pack in a space where enterprises are still figuring out how to apply agentic AI responsibly and at scale. The recognition underscores R Systems’ ability to design automation scenarios that combine robots, people, and AI models to deliver more adaptive workflows.

UiPath’s Regional Vice President for South Asia, Joey Chong, describes R Systems as instrumental to shaping the “agentic future” of the platform, highlighting its hands-on product work and commitment to co-innovation.

Diamond Partner Status Signals Deep Automation Strength

UiPath’s Diamond tier is its highest partner classification, signaling excellence in sales performance, solution delivery, and technical expertise. R Systems’ elevation to this level confirms its maturity in implementing UiPath’s automation stack—from discovery and orchestration to complex enterprise-scale deployments.

Its work with customers such as Shelf Drilling reinforces that reputation. The company has supported the oil and gas contractor’s automation roadmap since 2021, offering domain alignment, delivery precision, and forward-looking technology guidance. According to Shelf Drilling’s ERP Senior Manager, Adnan Sharafat, agentic AI is now opening even more opportunities for expansion.

Automation With Purpose—and ROI

R Systems is framing these recognitions as validation of its broader mission: using Agentic AI to enhance human productivity rather than replace it. The company continues to expand its capabilities through organic growth and strategic acquisitions, all aimed at building automation frameworks with measurable business impact.

Its approach reflects a larger industry shift. Enterprises are no longer satisfied with efficiency gains alone—they want automation that improves decision-making, elevates experiences, and delivers durable ROI. With UiPath putting more weight behind agentic intelligence, the partners who master it early are likely to shape how enterprises transition into the next era of work.

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Infobip is doubling down on its Voice portfolio in North America, rolling out strengthened Branded Calling ID (BCID™) capabilities as enterprises scramble to restore customer trust in an era dominated by spam calls, spoofed numbers, and caller ID fraud. With robocall scams surging across the U.S., the company aims to give brands a verified, trustworthy way to reach customers—before they stop answering altogether.

While consumers everywhere deal with unwanted calls, Americans experience the worst of it. Talker Research reports that the U.S. receives nearly twice as many fraudulent calls as other regions. Morning Consult adds that over three-quarters of Americans simply ignore incoming calls now. For brands that rely on voice as a critical engagement channel, that trend is a revenue killer.

And that’s where Infobip wants to make its mark.

Restoring Trust in Voice Calls

Infobip already supports more than 3,000 Voice customers worldwide, including brands like Uber, LG, and Mercado Libre. Its Voice stack is built for secure, compliant communication across global markets—even those riddled with regulatory barriers.

The company says branded calling is no longer optional. As voice fraud rises, businesses risk losing customer access, loyalty, and billions in potential revenue.

“Voice remains essential across the customer journey, but the spike in scams is pushing consumers away,” said Mijo Soldin, VP of Telecom Strategy and Partnerships at Infobip. He notes that companies failing to adopt BCID are already losing consumer confidence. Infobip’s goal is to simplify deployment and help rebuild reputational trust.

BCID allows enterprises to display verified details—brand name, logo, call reason, and other metadata—before a recipient even answers. The idea is simple: if people recognize who’s calling, they’re more likely to pick up.

Strengthening the Infrastructure Behind BCID

Infobip has spent the past year modernizing its U.S. voice backbone. After finalizing its acquisition of Peerless Network, the company now covers 98% of the U.S. with its nationwide voice network—critical for delivering fast, verified, end-to-end branded calling.

It also expanded its partnership with NumHub to integrate BCID directly into its Voice product suite. The result: enterprise brands can control, verify, and protect their caller identity at scale.

To accelerate adoption further, Infobip is collaborating with leading American telecom providers. The goal? Strip out the complexity that has historically slowed branded calling rollout.

“Branded Calling ID restores confidence by providing trusted caller information,” said Tom Sawanobori, SVP and CTO at CTIA. “Infobip is a valuable Authorized Partner in this growing ecosystem.”

Why It Matters Now

Spam calls aren’t slowing down. Fraud tactics are evolving. Consumers are tired.
For brands, the phone remains a high-intent, high-urgency channel—especially in finance, healthcare, logistics, and on-demand services. If customers don’t trust who’s calling, the entire engagement pipeline breaks.

Infobip’s upgraded voice infrastructure, paired with BCID, puts identity verification at the forefront of enterprise communications. It also positions the company competitively alongside other voice authentication and branded calling players expanding across the U.S.

The broader trend: verified identity is becoming the new currency of customer engagement. And Infobip wants to be the vendor making that infrastructure possible at national scale.

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Zenika Singapore is expanding its leadership bench with two major appointments: Seet Teck Kiang as Head of Business and the return of Michael Isvy as Head of Engineering. The dual hires signal a decisive push to scale the company’s AI Multiplier Framework across Asia and strengthen its position as a high-performance AI engineering partner for enterprises.

The move comes as organisations across the region shift from AI experimentation to full-scale AI integration. Zenika wants to position itself as the firm that helps them cross that gap — not with hype, but with disciplined engineering, pragmatic strategy, and cloud-native execution.

Scaling Zenika’s AI Multiplier Framework

Seet Teck Kiang brings more than 20 years of experience across Asia’s enterprise and public sectors. His background spans leadership roles at ThoughtWorks, EPAM Systems, and Zühlke Group, where he drove platform modernisation and complex transformation programmes. At Zenika, he will focus on extending the reach of the company’s AI Multiplier Framework (SHAPE × SHIP × SYNC), a model built to unify product engineering, AI-enabled delivery, and resilient architecture.

Seet says Zenika’s culture of engineering excellence and its structured approach to AI were key reasons behind his decision to join. He sees the framework as a practical path for organisations seeking long-term AI value, rather than short-lived pilots.

Engineering Returns to Its Roots

Zenika is also welcoming back a familiar face.
Michael Isvy — one of the early contributors to Zenika Singapore’s foundation — is returning to lead engineering and AI strategy. His role focuses on scaling augmented development practices, standardising AI workflows, and integrating responsible AI into everyday delivery.

Michael’s career spans both the French craftsmanship tradition and Singapore’s rapid innovation culture. This blend allows him to bridge methodologies and foster cross-border collaboration. His mission is to turn Zenika Singapore into the company’s AI engineering “living lab,” closely connected with technical teams in France.

By operationalising AI at scale, Michael aims to make AI more dependable and accessible for engineers and enterprise clients. His mandate includes accelerating adoption of augmented development, improving efficiency in delivery pipelines, and ensuring that AI remains a value generator rather than a costly experiment.

A Unified Push Toward Regional Expansion

Timothée Dufresne, Managing Director of Zenika Singapore, says the dual appointments position the company for the next decade of growth.

“Seet strengthens our business strategy and regional presence, while Michael elevates our engineering and AI capabilities,” he said. “Together, they will shape the next chapter of Zenika Singapore and Asia.”

With AI investment rising across Southeast Asia — and organisations seeking structured frameworks rather than scattered pilots — Zenika’s sharpened leadership focus comes at the right moment. The company is betting on disciplined engineering, repeatable AI models, and cross-market collaboration as the formula for sustained transformation.

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Global TV shipments are losing steam, and the latest numbers show exactly where the market is breaking. According to Omdia’s new TV Sets Market Tracker, worldwide shipments slipped to 52.5 million units in Q3 2025 — a slight 0.6% drop year-over-year. But that headline number hides a much sharper collapse in one of the world’s biggest markets: China.

The country’s TV shipments plunged 12.2% year-on-year as government subsidies that artificially inflated demand over the past year began to dry up. With many consumers already having upgraded — and with regional funding pools now running on fumes — the surge that once propped up the market is turning into a drag.

China’s Decline Exposes a Subsidy-Fueled Surge

For more than a year, government incentives kept China’s TV demand running hot. But that kind of growth was always going to hit a wall. Once subsidies rolled back, demand followed. Now the market is in corrective mode, with Omdia expecting an extended slowdown as the industry adjusts to more organic consumption levels.

This decline is already reshaping global strategy. Chinese TV giants like Hisense and TCL posted strong year-on-year growth of 11% and 2%, respectively, in Q3 2025 — but maintaining that trajectory at home is no longer feasible. With the local market cooling off, China’s leading brands are accelerating their push into overseas markets.

Omdia Principal Analyst Matthew Rubin notes that Chinese manufacturers have already made significant global gains. Now the downturn at home “will likely accelerate these efforts.” Europe and Asia & Oceania offer the most immediate opportunity, while the U.S. remains trickier due to tariffs and Mexico’s capacity constraints.

North America Defies Expectations, Asia & Oceania Surges

While China contracts, two major regions moved in the opposite direction.

North America posted 2.3% growth despite economic uncertainty and tariff pressure. Consumers continue to upgrade, and demand for mid-range and premium TVs has remained surprisingly resilient.

Asia & Oceania delivered the biggest upside shock with a 7.7% jump — a clear signal that Chinese brands are already leaning harder on neighboring markets to offset domestic losses. Rising disposable incomes, maturing retail channels, and competitive pricing are helping these brands gain rapid traction throughout Southeast Asia and beyond.

Big-Screen Slowdown Complicates Chinese Expansion Strategy

There’s another wrinkle: screen size preferences.

China’s slowdown has hit the large-screen segment hard. Growth in the 80-inch-and-above category nearly halved, dropping from over 40% each quarter during the past year to just 23.1% in Q3 2025. The 70–79 inch range barely grew at all, up only 1.1% year-on-year.

This shift creates a strategic dilemma for big Chinese manufacturers. Their global playbook has leaned heavily on low-cost, large-screen TVs — especially in North America and at home. But in the next wave of regions they’re targeting, consumers prefer much smaller screens.

In China, the average TV size sits at 62.8 inches. In Asia & Oceania, it’s just 45.5 inches. That mismatch means brands must adapt both pricing and product strategies if they want to sustain momentum across emerging markets.

What Comes Next for the Global TV Market?

The third quarter’s results point toward a recalibration rather than a collapse. Global shipments are nearly flat, but the distribution of demand is shifting fast. China’s influence is shrinking, North America is holding firm, and Asia & Oceania is becoming the next battleground for share growth.

Meanwhile, Chinese brands — already international heavyweights — are ramping up their global expansion as their home market cools. They’ll face new challenges in regions with different consumer preferences, regulatory hurdles, and local competition. But if recent performance is any guide, they’re prepared to adapt.

The sector may be entering a slower growth cycle, but the competitive race is far from slowing down. Instead, it’s moving to new regions, new screen sizes, and new strategies — setting the stage for a more complex and globally distributed TV market in 2026 and beyond.

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Artificial intelligence is sweeping across enterprise functions. Yet procurement continues to fall behind, even as pressures mount. New data from SAP Taulia’s AI in Procurement Report shows a widening gap between procurement’s rising workload and leadership’s limited investment.

Only 35% of global leaders see procurement and supply chain management as a priority area for AI investment. Finance, data analytics, and cybersecurity each attract more attention, leaving procurement at a strategic disadvantage.

This mismatch comes at a difficult moment. Procurement teams report heavier demands, tighter risk environments, and growing operational complexity. Yet AI funding remains slow.

Rising Pressures, Slow Progress

Procurement teams feel the strain. Seventy-two percent say demands increased during the past year. They face complex supplier ecosystems, volatile markets, and expanding compliance requirements. Although 44% believe AI will solve many of these challenges, executive prioritization remains low.

Leaders agree on AI’s potential impact. They highlight risk detection, data-led decision-making, and spend analysis as major opportunity areas. They also expect AI to streamline sourcing, accelerate tendering, and automate invoice processing. These improvements could shift procurement toward more strategic work.

However, interest levels vary sharply by region. Just 20% of UK leaders prioritize procurement AI investments, compared with 44% in Australia and 41% in Singapore. U.S. leaders sit at 37%. These gaps show a global function moving at different speeds.

Procurement Teams Use AI, Even Without Leadership Backing

Despite limited investment, procurement teams are not waiting. Many already use AI-powered procurement platforms such as SAP Joule, JAGGAER, and Ivalua. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini are also widely deployed.

This early adoption is paying off. Ninety percent of leaders using AI say automation lets their teams focus on higher-value work. They report stronger supplier relationships, better risk oversight, and more strategic impact. Moreover, 87% say AI insights strengthen procurement’s influence in business decision-making.

These numbers show a function willing to modernize, even when broader enterprise strategy lags behind.

Barriers Slow Enterprise-Wide Adoption

Leadership concerns continue to slow AI uptake. Data security and compliance worries top the list. Limited internal AI expertise and misaligned digital strategies add further friction. Practical issues such as poor data quality and workflow integration uncertainty follow close behind.

A deeper cultural barrier persists. Thirty percent of leaders still view procurement as an operational unit rather than a strategic one. This perception makes investment harder to justify, despite the function’s growing importance.

Experts warn that this mindset puts organizations at risk. Volatile supply chains demand predictive intelligence, not manual firefighting.

Industry Voices Call for Faster Investment

SAP Taulia Chief Product Officer Danielle Weinblatt argues that procurement sits at the center of business resilience. She notes that AI can transform how organizations manage risk, relationships, and working capital. She calls for investment that balances immediate needs with long-term vision.

NTT DATA’s John Roberts reinforces the urgency. He says AI is already elevating procurement from back-office support to a strategic business partner. For him, automation unlocks time for deeper supplier collaboration and stronger risk detection. He warns that procurement cannot afford to fall behind in this new industrial revolution.

TELUS Director of Procurement Ashifa Jumani highlights another key issue: mindset. She says leaders must position AI as an augmentation tool, not a threat. When AI handles repetitive tasks, teams gain time for negotiation, relationship-building, and long-term value creation.

The Road Ahead

Procurement knows where AI can deliver value. Teams are already using tools that enhance performance, reduce risk, and improve decision-making. Yet investment continues to trail behind other functions.

The report reveals a clear paradox. Procurement professionals understand AI’s potential, but many leadership teams remain hesitant. Without a shift in perception, organizations may miss a critical opportunity to strengthen resilience during uncertain times.

The companies that close this gap first will shape the next era of procurement—one defined by intelligence, automation, and strategic influence.

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Applause, the global leader in digital quality engineering and crowdsourced testing, is set to spotlight its expanding AI capabilities at Tech For Retail 2025, happening November 24–25 at the Paris Expo, Porte de Versailles. Now in its fifth year, the event will bring together more than 13,000 retail and tech leaders focused on how generative AI, automation, and data continue to reshape modern commerce.

AI Quality Takes Center Stage

At booth B132, Applause will demo its AI Training and Testing Solution, a fully managed service suite designed to boost the reliability, safety, and accuracy of AI-driven retail experiences. The offering spans fine-tuning, red teaming, model evaluation, bias detection, data sourcing, and UX research — all essential as retailers scale AI across customer service channels, websites, apps, and IVR systems.

With generative AI now embedded in everything from product discovery to shopper support, the pressure to deliver safe, trustworthy outputs is rising. Applause says its platform helps retailers mitigate risks tied to hallucinations, bias, toxic responses, and inconsistent model behavior — issues that can erode customer trust and damage brand equity.

Backed by 1.5 Million Testers Worldwide

Applause supports some of the world’s earliest and largest AI adopters, leveraging a global community of 1.5 million independent testing experts and end-users to validate real-world performance at scale. This human-in-the-loop approach ensures LLMs are trained, evaluated, and refined using diverse, scenario-rich datasets that reflect how actual shoppers behave.

The company’s crowdtesting services are fully managed, giving retailers a combination of strategy, execution, and continuous feedback needed to maintain high-quality omnichannel experiences. Applause partners with leading global retailers to test and optimize websites, apps, payments flows, conversational AI, and accessibility touchpoints long before launch.

Award-Winning Momentum in Retail Tech

The company enters Tech For Retail 2025 with fresh industry recognition. Earlier this year, Applause earned the RetailTech Breakthrough Award for “e-Commerce Infrastructure Solution of the Year” and a Gold Stevie Award for Company of the Year (Computer Software – Large) at the 2025 International Business Awards.

These accolades highlight Applause’s growing influence in retail technology as businesses increasingly demand scalable, high-assurance testing for AI-enabled experiences.

Consumers Leaning Into AI-Assisted Shopping

Adding to its momentum, Applause recently released its 2025 Holiday Shopping & Payments Survey, which shows consumers are warming to AI-assisted shopping while continuing to encounter friction in checkout and payment experiences. Persistent gaps in payment reliability and user experience remain major conversion killers — reinforcing the need for rigorous testing across digital retail ecosystems.

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