UBS analysts share their insights on the latest technological trend at a news briefing on June 13, 2023. (ZHANG TIANYUAN / CHINA DAILY)

China presents significant opportunities for artificial intelligence growth because of its size, market and database, a UBS analyst said on Tuesday.

Jerry Liu, head of China internet research at UBS, said many companies in the Asia-Pacific region are behind their counterparts in developed markets in terms of digitalization. However, policy support for digitalization, coupled with the lower bar to entry provided by AI technology, could present significant growth opportunities for businesses in the region.

UBS analysts also highlighted the potential for generative artificial intelligence to drive efficiency and productivity across a wide range of sectors

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“China has more users of generative AI and more data compared to other economies, so I believe there are still many opportunities there,” he said.

Liu said that the emergence of generative AI has excited companies because “in every cycle, ... if half of the existing platforms (with an AI boom) survive or thrive in the next cycle, that’s already very good,” and investors are trying to identify which companies will be the winners in the next cycle.

UBS hosted the first Future-Now APAC conference in Hong Kong on Monday and Tuesday, with over 800 attendees, including investors, industry pundits and entrepreneurs across the region. The two-day event explored the current technological trend.

At a Tuesday news briefing as part of the UBS Future-Now APAC Conference, UBS analysts also highlighted the potential for generative artificial intelligence to drive efficiency and productivity across a wide range of sectors.

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Nicolas Gaudois, head of research, ASEAN, and head of APAC technology at UBS, said that a total of 32 sector teams at UBS have said that generative AI has the potential to transform revenue growth, cost savings, and competitive dynamics across industries they cover, with the overwhelming sense that the AI systems will “indeed be transformational”.

Gaudois said on Monday, “2023 is a transitional year for the tech industry, and we believe generative AI has the potential to be the biggest tech transformation since mobile or Internet 1.0.”

tianyuanzhang@chinadailyhk.com