AI Presents Growth Opportunities for Malaysian eCommerce Sellers, Despite Adoption Challenges, Lazada Report Reveals
Malaysian online sellers have adopted AI in only 26% of their business operations, lower than the SEA average of 37%. Lazada's new playbook offers best practices to integrate AI into operations. Indonesia and Vietnam lead in AI adoption in eCommerce in Southeast Asia. The research highlights an implementation gap where sellers understand the importance of AI but struggle with deployment. Lazada is launching AI-driven solutions to enhance sellers' efficiency and competitiveness.
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA
Media OutReach Newswire - 8 April 2025 - Lazada, a leading eCommerce platform in Southeast Asia, today published its research report, Bridging the AI Gap: Online Seller Perceptions and Adoption Trends in Southeast Asia (SEA). Developed in collaboration with Kantar, the report surveyed 1,214 eCommerce sellers across Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam to examine AI adoption trends, challenges, and opportunities, shedding light on sellers' readiness to integrate AI into their operations.
Knowledge, Perception, and Implementation Gap Evident Among Online Sellers
The research reveals that 69% of Malaysian online sellers show strong familiarity with AI, in line with the regional average of 68%, indicating their awareness of AI. However, actual adoption stands at only 37% for SEA sellers, with Malaysia facing a wider gap between estimated adoption (30%) and real implementation (26%).
Online sellers in Malaysia face challenges in assessing AI efficacy and cost implications. While 89% of SEA sellers acknowledge AI's role in boosting productivity, Malaysian sellers show slightly lower sentiment at 77%. Costliness and time-consuming implementation are cited as barriers to adoption, with 64% of Malaysian sellers indicating these factors.
Implementation Gap and AI-Readiness Levels in Malaysia vs. SEA
The research highlights an implementation gap where sellers understand the importance of AI but struggle with effective deployment. Malaysia lags behind Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines in AI adoption across business functions. The report identifies three distinct seller archetypes - AI Adepts, AI Aspirants, and AI Agnostics - based on their readiness level to embrace AI.
85% of Malaysian sellers fall into the AI Aspirants and AI Agnostics categories, signaling a need for enhanced seller support and AI-powered tools to drive implementation.
Leveraging Lazada's AI-Driven Solutions to Transform Business Operations
To support sellers in their AI adoption journey, Lazada is launching the Online Sellers Artificial Intelligence Readiness Playbook. The research reveals that sellers are already leveraging key AI-driven solutions on Lazada's platform to enhance their efficiency.
Lazada is also releasing new Generative AI (GenAI) features designed to empower sellers and enhance their product listings, streamline operations, and boost customer conversions.
Download the Online Sellers Artificial Intelligence Readiness Playbook to understand how these solutions can offer a structured framework for sellers to integrate AI into their workflows to drive growth, efficiency, and innovation in the eCommerce landscape.
Developed in partnership with Kantar, Bridging the AI Gap: Online Seller Perceptions and Adoption Trends in Southeast Asia provides a comprehensive analysis of AI adoption trends, challenges, and opportunities, offering insights into how sellers can leverage AI to drive growth and efficiency in Southeast Asia's evolving eCommerce landscape.