Businesses across Asia Pacific are placing greater emphasis on digital sovereignty as the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence and cloud services raises concerns over data security, compliance and control.
The latest IDC InfoBrief commissioned by Expereo found that 43% of APAC organisations rank digital sovereignty among the leading drivers of technology investment, compared with 30% globally.
Among APAC organisations prioritising digital sovereignty, 51% said they want to retain control over sensitive or strategic data, while 45% cited regulatory compliance across jurisdictions and 38% pointed to geopolitical risks.
The concern is also evident in Malaysia, where 55% of organisations identified retaining control over sensitive or strategic data as their leading digital sovereignty consideration.
Digital sovereignty is also regarded as a higher priority in APAC than globally, with 38% of organisations in the region rating it as a top or high priority compared with 33% worldwide.
The push comes as businesses expand their use of AI. While 61% of APAC organisations plan to prioritise AI and machine learning investment over the next 12 months, 54% of technology leaders see new security risks from AI as a significant potential consequence.
Among organisations that have yet to adopt AI or are only beginning implementation, 60% said security, data privacy, compliance or digital sovereignty concerns were significant barriers to adoption.
Eric Wong, President, Asia Pacific at Expereo, said businesses across the region face different regulatory requirements, cross-border data rules and geopolitical risks while accelerating their adoption of cloud and AI.
“For multinational organisations, the challenge is maintaining visibility and control over how data and traffic move across markets without creating fragmented operations. As AI adoption accelerates, the network will become an increasingly important part of managing that complexity and enabling businesses to operate confidently across the region.”
The research also points to gaps in the network infrastructure supporting these technologies. Only 9% of APAC organisations said their networks were fully ready to support new technology initiatives, while 54% said they were mostly ready but still had gaps.
Among APAC organisations prioritising digital sovereignty, 33% cited concerns over cross-border data transfers and jurisdiction, while 16% said pressure from customers or business partners to localise data was influencing their approach.
The findings suggest that as AI and cloud adoption expands, businesses are increasingly treating control over data, networks and digital infrastructure as part of broader technology and risk management.
