Google, Temasek and Bain forecast Thai digital economy GMV of US$72 billion in 2026, up 19%

The report’s consumer-token measure stands at 15 million tokens per generative AI user in Thailand, placing it joint third among the six markets compared. This measure covers tokens used by paid personal accounts and excludes enterprise usage.

Thai users turn to AI for practical tasks and information discovery, with roughly one-third of prompts concerning lifestyle topics. Work, education and online shopping are leading areas of use, followed by health and travel.

The report finds that 41% of consumer journeys begin on AI platforms. Some 75% of users express greater trust in AI than a year earlier, while more than 80% are willing to delegate purchasing decisions to AI agents. The findings also point to interest in delegating more complex tasks.

Thai accounts for 78% of AI conversations, highlighting the importance of language models that understand local language and context.

Rafael Scislowski, country manager of Google Thailand, highlighted the strength of both the digital economy and AI adoption, with individuals and businesses incorporating the technology into work and everyday life.

“Thailand has firmly reaffirmed its position as an AI leader in Southeast Asia, with digital economy gross merchandise value reaching US$72 billion and the region’s highest frequency of AI use, averaging nearly 2.7 times a week,” Scislowski said.

Google aims to work with the Thai government and local partners to turn growing user confidence into inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Willy Chang, a partner at Bain & Company, pointed to Thailand’s widespread embrace of generative AI and its high frequency of everyday use. He linked that momentum to policies prioritising digital sovereignty, AI governance, highly skilled workers and domestic industry.

Chang stressed that business results, rather than adoption levels alone, would determine success. Companies that redesign their operations around AI have an opportunity to turn technology use into tangible returns.

Digital payments reach US$215 billion as lending grows 24%

Digital financial services continue to record double-digit growth, supported by payments, lending and insurance. The report measures these activities separately through transaction values, outstanding loans and insurance premiums.

Digital lending is the fastest-growing of these segments. Virtual bank licensing is expected to support expansion by enabling services for retail customers and small and medium-sized enterprises that remain underserved.

The insurance figures combine gross written premiums and annual premium equivalent. The report identifies new requirements for compulsory motor insurance policies to be issued electronically as a supporting factor.

Private funding totals US$200 million across 11 deals

Thailand recorded US$200 million in private funding across 11 completed deals in the first half of 2026.

The primary report identifies a digital financial services deal as a supporting factor during that period. Its discussion of data-centre funding refers to a deal in the second half of 2025.

The private-funding figures cover completed fundraising rounds. They exclude multibillion-dollar, long-term capital expenditure by global technology companies and data-centre providers to expand Thailand’s cloud and AI infrastructure.

Source: Bangkokbiznews