Summary：**AI Impact on ASEAN Workers: Millions at Risk, Yet No Major Layoffs Yet** *Employment in jobs with

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**AI Impact on ASEAN Workers: Millions at Risk, Yet No Major Layoffs Yet**

*Employment in jobs with the greatest potential for AI to automate or augment tasks has continued to grow since 2017, an ILO report said*

### Introduction
Artificial intelligence is reshaping workplaces across Southeast Asia, but the region has not yet seen the wave of mass layoffs that some forecasters predicted. According to a recent International Labour Organization (ILO) study, employment in occupations most susceptible to AI‑driven automation or augmentation has actually risen steadily since 2017. This paradox—growing job numbers alongside heightened risk—has sparked debate among policymakers, business leaders, and workers about the true trajectory of AI’s influence on the ASEAN labor market.

### Key Developments
The ILO report highlights that sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, and business‑process outsourcing have added workers even as AI tools become more prevalent. In Vietnam and Thailand, for example, factories have integrated collaborative robots to assist human operators rather than replace them, leading to higher output and a modest increase in headcount. Meanwhile, the Philippines’ call‑center industry has adopted AI‑powered chatbots for routine inquiries, freeing agents to handle more complex customer issues—a shift that has coincided with a 4% rise in employment over the past two years.

These trends suggest that AI is currently functioning more as an augmentative force than a outright substitute. Governments have responded with upskilling initiatives: Singapore’s SkillsFuture program now offers AI literacy modules, while Indonesia’s Ministry of Manpower has launched a national digital‑skills roadmap targeting 5 million workers by 2026.

### Industry Analysis
Analysts point to three factors tempering immediate job losses. First, many ASEAN economies still rely on labor‑intensive processes where full automation remains