(Re)invention of the human: How ASEAN universities are adapting to an AI-led future

(Re)invention of the human: How ASEAN universities are adapting to an AI-led future

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When ChatGPT burst onto the scene in November 2022, amassing 100 million users within two months, it signalled the start of a new artificial intelligence (AI) age. Since then, the technology has dramatically reshaped how teaching, learning, and research take place - raising an urgent question: how can educational institutions harness AI's benefits while guarding against its risks?

"If you apply too many rules and regulations, you constrain innovation. But if you don't have rules, things can go badly too," said NUS President, Professor Tan Eng Chye. "This is especially important in the wake of complex, composite, multimodal, agentic AI, which is advancing really rapidly."

Delivering the opening address to over 40 university leaders at the 2025 Programme for Leadership in University Management (PLUM), Prof Tan noted that AI deserved particular attention for its sweeping and profound impact.

"There is much to delve into with AI - from practical considerations of large language models, adapting data management practices, capabilities, and infrastructure, to developing policies and governance that are comprehensive yet not prohibitive," said Prof Tan.

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Since its inception in 2012, PLUM has been a signature event organised by NUS Globalfor university leaders across Southeast Asia to foster ties across their universities and countries, exchange knowledge and experience, and advance ideas on the governance and management of Southeast Asia's leading universities. Cumulatively, PLUM has brought together over 350 participants from over 30 universities across 10 ASEAN countries to date.

This year's PLUM theme, "The Evolving University Ecosystem", set the tone for three days of discussion on how universities can stay relevant amid rapid technological change, shifting societal demands, and an increasingly uncertain global climate.

Across a varied range of activities from presentations, roundtable discussions, simulations and fireside chats, academics and management representatives of over 30 ASEAN universities exchanged views on weaving AI into the classroom and using it to advance research, in ways that preserve trust and integrity.

Equipping faculty for an AI-enabled classroom

Many institutions are grappling with how to meaningfully use AI in teaching. This topic also kicked off the roundtable discussions which participants delved into enthusiastically, after two talks on the role of AI in teaching and learning by Associate Professor Soo Yuen Jien, Director of NUS' Centre for Teaching, Learning & Technology(CTLT), and Associate Professor Ben Leong, Director of AI Centre for Educational Technologies(AICET) at NUS, about NUS' experience of integrating AI into the teaching and learning process.

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At NUS, all faculty members are required to attend an "AI for Academics" course, with incentives to encourage full participation, such as linking course completion to performance-bonus eligibility.

However, it was also emphasised that structural support - from communities that share tips and best practices to engineering teams that implement AI-enabled tools - mattered even more than compliance.

Security issues were also discussed, with participants stressing that data privacy was paramount, as students and staff often shared sensitive information on AI platforms without being fully aware of the risks involved. Inclusivity was another issue, as not every student can afford subscriptions to advanced AI tools, widening existing socioeconomic divides.

Another concern was the ethics surrounding AI, with some participants sharing how their universities have begun introducing AI literacy to students and raising awareness of the ethical implications of AI.

Participants also noted that AI is no longer an isolated skillset. Universities must ensure staff without technical backgrounds, from clerical officers to curriculum administrators, are trained in basic AI usage.

The use of AI today extends far beyond standalone applications, and increasingly intersects with numerous domains - most notably in the research sector. The versatility of AI+Xwas elaborated upon in talks by Professor Mohan Kankanhalli, the Director of the NUS Artificial Intelligence Institute, as well as Assistant Professor Gianmarco Mengaldo from the College of Design & Engineering, and Associate Professor Huang Ke Wei from the Asian Institute of Digital Finance, with the latter two sharing their thoughts on AI use in the areas of Climate and Finance.

Overcoming data constraints as a region

Other challenges surfaced during another roundtable session were more structural, particularly around infrastructure, data access, and governance.

Universities across the region face limitations in high-performance computing resources, while fragmented data ecosystems constrain research progress. Regulatory restrictions around medical and biological datasets compound the difficulty, creating bottlenecks that make it harder to build or train models at scale.

Open-source AI models were highlighted as a pragmatic workaround for the region. Instead of building large models from scratch, universities can fine-tune open-source systems with curated local datasets. For global challenges such as climate change, some leaders suggested making data accessible to all to support broader scientific collaboration.

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Age of instant gratification

The age of AI has also resulted in students being surrounded in an environment saturated with digital stimuli. Several leaders observed rising loneliness, declining resilience, and increased mental health concerns, despite unprecedented connectivity.

AI has also altered how students communicate and consume information, with common observations of students reading less, and the 'alienation of the body of knowledge from the person'. Older generations became experts in their fields through intensive reading and note-taking. Today's students, exposed to search engines and generative AI from a young age, expect proficiency without effort.

With most information now instantly accessible, how should universities reinvent themselves to avoid becoming obsolete?

The answer could lie in real-world multidisciplinary experiences, as well as greater mental health protection, being underscored in the university life journey. To this end, Prof Tan highlighted the NUSOne initiative, which encourages students to join communities - from sports teams to dance groups - to deepen offline relationships and rebuild the human connections eroded by digital saturation.

As the discussions at PLUM 2025 made clear, AI is here to stay. "We don't have a choice whether to invest in AI or not," said Prof Tan. "We must invest because our students and future graduates are going to use AI one way or another."

Building on these conversations, the programme advanced over the next two days through panels, talks, and even simulations, covering macro-level issues ranging from AI governance and literacy across institutions, and anticipating the impact of emerging technologies, to the data strategies and infrastructure needed to build future-ready campuses.

The discussions were led by Associate Vice President (Global Relations) Associate Professor Lum Sau Kim; Chief IT Officer Ms Tan Shui Min; Chief Data Officer Dr Chan Taizan; Vice President (Campus Infrastructure) Mr Koh Yan Leng; Universiti Brunei Darussalam's Vice Chancellor Dr Hazri Kifle; Chiang Mai University's Associate Vice President, Digital Technology and Law, Associate Professor Rattasit Sukhahuta; and Dr Marga Gual Soler, from the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator foundation.

Given the wide-ranging implications of an AI-powered future, universities must act swiftly and decisively to remain relevant and steadfast to their missions: teaching students how to navigate AI, and how to preserve the unique aspects that make us human, while coordinating leadership to steer their institutions through rapidly changing landscapes.