Innovation day praises digital progress
The fourth Huawei Asia-Pacific Innovation Day was held in Bangkok today.
Co-hosted by Huawei Technologies and the Thai Ministry of Science and Technology, the theme of this year's event is "Innovate for a digital Asia-Pacific".
Nearly 300 attendees from governments, industry and academia gathered to explore how digital infrastructure accelerates the growth of the digital economy, enriches life, drives innovation and helps cultivate an ecosystem of shared success.
As one of the most vibrant emerging markets in the world, the Asia-Pacific region faces a tidal wave of industry digitisation, with a digital economy that is progressing each day.
At the event, Dr Somkid Jatusripitak, deputy prime minister, spoke about Thailand's strategy of "going digital" and how it is driving the transformation and modernisation of the economy.
ICT-enabled innovation is becoming an important engine of Thailand 4.0. The effects of digitisation are spilling over into vertical industries, helping companies boost productivity, reduce costs and roll out new products and services. This ultimately paves the way for new business models and markets and brings new development opportunities to all.
Somkid reaffirmed the Thai government's commitment to creating a favourable environment for digital innovation, stressing Huawei's role as an important contributor to the development of Thailand's ICT industry. He said that he would like to see more in-depth collaboration between Thailand and Huawei.
Guo Ping, chairman of Huawei, followed with a speech highlighting the importance of the digital ecosystem. "Many economies in the Asia-Pacific region have set out on their digital transformation journey," he said.
"But growth has been uneven. The gap between developed and developing economies is widening, and we see the emergence of a Matthew effect where digitally advanced economies produce greater returns on their infrastructure than less-developed economies. However, we can work together to get ahead of this trend.”
Guo continued: "Governments need to take the lead, industries need to proactively do their part and individuals need to work to improve their digital skills. Huawei is ready and willing to work with Asia-Pacific countries to build this digital ecosystem. We will collaborate openly and extensively, and happily share our own slice of the market with others. Together, we can grow the industry and make the pie bigger for everyone involved."
