Open AI ecosystems encourage diversity and multi-party engagement, providing an “equal playground” for all, rather than central dominance, noted Jia from Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
He further suggested that the effectiveness of these collaborative models will help determine whether Southeast Asia becomes primarily a proving ground or a true shaper of the next generation of Chinese AI models.
“If it’s a public good, there is no leader – only stakeholders,” Jia said, describing the future of AI as a shared, multilateral enterprise rather than a contest for supremacy.
Executives at Chinese tech firms acknowledge these sensitivities, saying they are working to build trust by focusing on long-term partnerships, transparency, and shared success.
Wu from Tencent Cloud said that its partners help tailor workflows, knowledge management and deployment to specific industries.
“Although our product is robust, each customer’s needs vary,” he said.
“Once deployed, the IP and knowledge stay with the client, which helps build trust and long-term value.”
Choong from Alibaba Cloud Intelligence said the company operates on openness and trust.
He cited Qwen3 – its most advanced open-source AI coding model to date – as an example, noting that by making it publicly available, Alibaba Cloud aims to foster a “global community of innovation”.
“We believe that openness can in return democratise AI development, drive more AI innovation across businesses and society at large, and ultimately, benefit consumers with new and exciting AI applications.”
Shi from SenseTime said the company’s “consistent” strategy is centred on helping partners succeed.
“We know the challenges and we also know the rewards of early AI adoption, so we share those with our partners, and we do want to share with more partners in Southeast Asia,” he said.
“I think customers are very happy with the fact that we are trying very hard to meet international norms – not (being) just a Chinese-Chinese company, but a company that is trying really to be international.”
