The digital future of Asia is already here. In China, millions of people enter public transportation each day using their smartphones, emerge and pay for their breakfast with WeChat, and use an app to have their lunch delivered a few hours later.
They work at offices that are rapidly leveraging blockchain, AI, robotics, and cloud computing seamlessly around them. They book restaurants for dinner over the internet and late-night shop on the train.
Key takeaways
- Regulators can both protect their local populations’ data while facilitating cross-border data sharing that allows regional e-commerce to grow.
- Consumers require more education on how to self-protect their personal data assets as they do financial and other personal items of value.
- Policymakers and regulators can more actively foster digital inclusion, digital literacy, and next-generation technology skills.
The smartphone revolution
Much of this has been enabled by rising smartphone adoption. For example, in 2017, Asia saw 319 million new mobile connections, compared with just 5 million new mobile connections in Europe over the…
