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AI Presents Growth Opportunities for Malaysian eCommerce Sellers, Despite Adoption Challenges, Lazada Report Reveals

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  • On average, Malaysian online sellers have adopted AI in only 26% of their business operations, significantly lower than the SEA average of 37%.
  • Indonesia and Vietnam lead average AI adoption in eCommerce in Southeast Asia, followed by Singapore and Thailand.
  • Lazada’s new playbook provides sellers with best practices, actionable insights and resources to help integrate AI into their operations.

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 of AI, in line with the average for the region at 68%, indicating that they are aware of AI. While SEA sellers believe they have integrated AI into 47% of their business operations, actual adoption stands only at 37%. In Malaysia, this gap is even wider with sellers estimating adoption at 30%, while real implementation is lower at just 26%, underscoring a disparity between perceived and actual AI use in the country.

Online sellers face a dilemma in terms of assessing AI efficacy and its cost implications. While 89% of SEA sellers acknowledge AI’s role in boosting productivity, this sentiment is slightly lower amongst Malaysian sellers at 77%. This contrasts with the perceived overall usefulness of AI, where only 1 in 2 Malaysian sellers are sceptical about its utility, compared with almost two-thirds (61%) of SEA sellers who feel the same. Furthermore, although 87% sellers in Malaysia agree that AI can drive long-term cost savings, nearly two-thirds (64%) cite costliness and time-consuming implementation as barriers to adoption.

The research also suggests an implementation gap, where sellers understand the importance of AI but struggle with effective deployment. Highlighting the challenge of transitioning from familiar, manual processes to AI-driven solutions, nearly all sellers in SEA (93%) agree that it is important to upskill the workforce to use AI so that they can be more productive, yet 3 out of 4 sellers (75%) also concede that their employees still prefer to use tools they are familiar with, rather than new AI solutions. In Malaysia, the importance of upskilling for AI is slightly lower at 89%, although a high majority of sellers (67%) still indicate that their employees prefer to use tried-and-tested ways of working.

Comparing AI-readiness levels in Malaysia vs. SEA

Across the region, Indonesia and Vietnam lead with 42% AI adoption across business functions, while Singapore and Thailand follow closely at 39% and finally the Philippines at 32% and Malaysia at 26%. Based on the level of AI adoption across five core aspects of operations of a seller’s business, namely operations and logistics, product management, marketing and advertising, customer service, and workforce management, the report identifies three distinct seller archetypes – AI Adepts, AI Aspirants, and AI Agnostics[1], based on the average score they attained in each aspect of operations to represent their readiness level to embrace AI:

  • AI Adepts: Sellers who have integrated AI across at least 80% of their operations, placing them at the forefront of adoption. Only 15% of Malaysian sellers belong to this category, significantly lower than the SEA average of 24%.
  • AI Aspirants: Sellers who have partially integrated AI into their operations, but still face adoption gaps across key functions. This group comprises 43% of Malaysian sellers, aligning with half of the sellers in Southeast Asia (50%).
  • AI Agnostics: This group lags in AI adoption, with most business functions still handled manually. Malaysians have a notably higher number of sellers in this category (42%), nearly double the Southeast Asia average of 26%.

Findings indicate that Thailand has the highest share of AI Adepts, with 30% of sellers in this category. Singapore (29%), Indonesia (29%), and Vietnam (22%) also demonstrate strong AI implementation despite knowledge gaps, while Malaysia (15%) and the Philippines (19%) face challenges related to internal buy-in and infrastructure limitations. 85% of Malaysian sellers fall into the AI Aspirants and AI Agnostics categories, signalling a pressing need for enhanced seller support (48%) and AI-powered tools (47%) to drive implementation.

“The findings from our research reveal a fascinating gap in Southeast Asia’s eCommerce ecosystem. While most sellers understand AI’s transformative potential, many are still navigating the path from recognition to implementation,” said James Dong, Chief Executive Officer, Lazada Group. “As a leading eCommerce platform in Southeast Asia, we aim to bridge the knowledge and adoption gap by developing accessible AI solutions that address the unique challenges faced by sellers across different markets, ultimately making technology more accessible and driving sustainable business growth regardless of a seller’s size or technical expertise.”

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, designed to provide strategic guidance based on sellers’ AI maturity levels. The research reveals that sellers are already leveraging key AI-driven solutions on Lazada’s platform to enhance their efficiency, validating Lazada’s continuous investments into cutting-edge AI innovations and advanced tools that streamline eCommerce operations and drive competitiveness.

With 67% of sellers expressing strong satisfaction in existing Lazada AI features[2], Lazada is also releasing new Generative AI (GenAI) features that are designed to empower sellers and enhance their product listings, streamline operations, and boost customer conversions such as:

  1. AI Smart Product Optimisation: Powered by GenAI, this tool helps sellers identify improvements they can make to their product titles, descriptions, or even photos. It enables automated virtual try-ons, background modifications, and model adjustments, allowing sellers to produce professional product imagery quickly within minutes.
  2. AI-Powered Translations: This feature automatically translates product content into multiple local languages, enabling sellers to expand their reach across diverse markets efficiently and accurately.
  3. Lazzie Seller: A dedicated AI assistant within the Alibaba Seller Centre (ASC), providing instant responses to frequently asked questions, quick navigation to key features, store risk assessments, and business advice to boost seller efficiency and growth.

To find out more, 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 an ever-evolving eCommerce landscape.


[1] AI Adepts are sellers in the top 25th percentile for AI adoption in terms of their scores, AI Aspirants fall within the middle 25th and 75th percentile, and AI Agnostics are in the bottom 25th percentile.
[2] Refer to Annex for more details

About the Research

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. The report surveyed 1,214 eCommerce sellers across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam in February 2025.

This follows the Artificial Intelligence Adoption in eCommerce in Southeast Asia Whitepaper, another research conducted in partnership with Kantar, which surveyed more than 6,000 eCommerce users in the region in September 2024 to better understand AI awareness, trust and preferences, shopping behaviour, and consumer pain points in the region.

Annex
Lazada’s AI features for sellers:

  1. Lazada Business Advisor: AI-powered analytics tool that provides real-time insights to optimise sales and business performance. Almost seven in 10 Lazada sellers report strong satisfaction and almost half (48%) actively use this tool to track trends and make data-driven decisions
  2. Lazada Sponsored Solutions: A targeted advertising platform that boosts product visibility and maximises sales through AI-driven recommendations. Two in three (67%) sellers report strong satisfaction, and 46% actively use this tool, citing its positive impact on sales growth.
  3. AI Smart Listing: Generative AI tool that automates product listing by generating and pre-filling compelling attributes based on images or keywords. 64% of sellers report strong satisfaction in leveraging this feature to reduce listing time and improve content quality.
  4. Virtual Try-Ons: An AI-powered AR feature that allows shoppers to visualise products in real time, increasing purchase confidence and reducing returns. 62% of sellers express strong satisfaction with its effectiveness, with 42% of sellers using it actively.
  5. AI Selling Points: A tool that analyses product data and customer behaviour to automatically highlight key product features to drive conversions. 68% of sellers express strong satisfaction with this feature and 42% actively use it to attract more customers to their storefront online.
  6. Lazada IM Shop Assistant (LISA): An AI-powered tool that helps sellers enhance customer engagement by providing automated, AI-driven responses to inquiries, improving service efficiency and conversion rates. 65% of sellers express strong satisfaction with this feature and 38% actively use it.

Hashtag: #LazadaMY #Lazada




The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Lazada Group

Lazada Group is Southeast Asia’s pioneer eCommerce platform. For the last 13 years, Lazada has been accelerating progress in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam through commerce and technology. Today, a thriving local ecosystem links about 160 million active users to more than one million actively-selling sellers every month, who are transacting safely and securely via trusted payment channels and Lazada Wallet, receiving parcels through a homegrown logistics network that has become the largest in the region.

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VF 8 Is Connecting a New Global VinFast Community

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VinFast’s electric SUV is earning loyalty from Vietnam to the Middle East by fitting seamlessly into real lives, long drives, and daily routines.

HAI PHONG, VIETNAM – Media OutReach Newswire – 16 January 2026 – VinFast’s VF 8 is traveling well, winning over drivers across markets with everyday performance, thoughtful design, and uncommon peace of mind.

A VF 8 owner belong to a relatively exclusive, self-selecting club that its maker VinFast have built across the globe. It is the kind of club formed less by marketing than by shared curiosity and a willingness to move early. Owners tend to recognize one another not by badges or decals, but by the confidence that comes from having made a deliberate choice.

The VF 8 holds a special place for VinFast. It was the brand’s first fully international offering, the vehicle tasked with introducing a young Vietnamese automaker to demanding markets abroad. As a result, the car was designed to travel well. Styled in collaboration with Pininfarina, the VF 8 favors clean proportions over visual noise. Beneath the surface, its dual-motor all-wheel-drive system and 402 horsepower provide performance that feels reassuring.

In Vietnam, the VF 8 has appealed to high-mileage drivers like Nguyen Phuong Hoang Dung, a Ho Chi Minh City-based construction project manager who covers about 5,000 kilometers a month. “When you drive that much, comfort and stability directly affect your health, your mindset, and how well you work,” he said. Having spent years with gasoline cars, he switched to the VF 8 in August 2025, drawn by its smooth throttle response and calm, seamless acceleration. Now, with more than 20,000 kilometers behind him, he said, “The more I drive it, the more confident I am that choosing the VF 8 was the right decision.”

As the VF 8 expanded into North America and Europe, it increasingly settled into a simpler role: a dependable everyday vehicle. Robert, who has driven his for more than a year and a half, said it has been “a great vehicle,” adding that “you will not find another this size in the price range they offered it.” For Jonathan, the VF 8 fits neatly into daily routines. “For us it’s a city vehicle with short rides every day, and it answers our needs,” he said. “Very comfortable, impressive performance, good in snow, and strong overall.”

In the Middle East, the VF 8’s appeal sharpens as VinFast pairs the car with ownership benefits that are rare in the segment, including complimentary maintenance coverage for five years or 100,000 kilometers. These are not small details in markets where peace of mind often matters as much as design. “The maintenance package made the decision easy,” said an owner in Dubai. “You know exactly where you stand.”

The idea of a VF 8 community is beginning to take shape. Across markets, it connects drivers in Vietnam, Europe, North America, and the Middle East through a shared understanding of what modern electric ownership can be. Thoughtful design. Capable performance. A clear push toward sustainability without asking drivers to compromise their routines.

For those inside the club, the VF 8 is not simply a statement car. No, something even better. A car that makes sense, day after day, in very different parts of the world.

Hashtag: #VF8 #VinFast

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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ONYX Hospitality Group Partners with Yee Fung Group to Launch “Y Hotel Nanshan Shenzhen”, Expanding its Portfolio in China

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BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 16 January 2026 ONYX Hospitality Group, a leading Southeast Asian hospitality management company specialising in hotels, resorts, serviced apartments, and luxury residences, is proud to announce its new partnership with Yee Fung Group to operate Y Hotel Nanshan in Shenzhen, People’s Republic of China.

ONYX Hospitality Group oversees renowned brands including Amari, OZO, Shama, and Oriental Residence across key destinations in the Asia–Pacific region. This agreement marks another significant milestone in strengthening ONYX’s presence in the Chinese market. Scheduled to open in Q4 2026, the hotel supports ONYX’s long-term growth strategy as it works toward its target of managing more than 75 properties by 2030.

Mr Yuthachai Charanachitta, Chief Executive Officer of ONYX Hospitality Group, commented: “This collaboration reflects the strong confidence Yee Fung Group has in ONYX, following our successful partnership in managing Y Hotel Hong Kong. It represents a significant step forward in building on that success and further expanding ONYX’s presence in the Greater China market. At the same time, this partnership reinforces ONYX’s position as a distinctive ‘Regional Player’, well-positioned for stable and sustainable growth across the region.”

Y Hotel Nanshan Shenzhen featuring 82 thoughtfully designed guest rooms and suites, located within YEE FUNG PLACE on a strategically significant site surrounded by key national infrastructure. The area is supported by five major national sea and land ports, including Shekou, Chiwan and Mawan, servicing more than 150 shipping routes. It is also situated at the heart of one of China’s leading innovation and industrial hubs, home to sectors such as integrated circuits, artificial intelligence, biomedicine and the marine economy, alongside more than 50 specialised industrial parks.

Y Hotel Nanshan Shenzhen is ideally suited for leisure travellers, offering convenient accessibility just 35 minutes from Shenzhen Baoan International Airport and 31 minutes from Shenzhen North Railway Station, and only 650 metres from Lilin Subway Station. The surrounding area features vibrant food markets and nightlife destinations such as Nanyi Fang, Shekou Sea World, Green World and Houhai, as well as cultural and recreational attractions including Shenzhen Poly Theatre, Shenzhen Talent Park, Nanshan Museum, Nanshan Park and Shenzhen Bay Park. Guests will also find leading shopping centres nearby, including Walmart, Xinhe Shopping Plaza, Garden City, Haiya Mega Mall, Coastal City and Shenzhen Bay MixC.

Furthermore, the hotel is located close to the headquarters of major national technology companies such as ZTE, Tencent, Huawei, Alibaba, Han’s Laser and Mindray, as well as Shenzhen University, positioning it as both a relaxing retreat and a strategic hub for business travellers seeking comfort alongside a distinctive lifestyle experience.Hashtag: #ONYXHospitalityGroup #YeeFungGroup #YHotel #HospitalityManagement #HotelManagement #LifestyleHotel



The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About ONYX Hospitality Group:

ONYX Hospitality Group, a reputable force in Southeast Asia’s hospitality industry, operates a collection of comprehensive yet complementary brands – Amari, OZO, Shama and Oriental Residence – catering to the distinctive needs of discerning business and leisure travellers in Southeast Asia where their expertise lies. In addition to its brand portfolio, ONYX Hospitality Group also operates additional hospitality services across spa and food and beverage. With over five decades of management experience, the company extends its innovative solutions throughout the region, upholding internationally recognised standards and ensuring optimal operational manoeuvrability. By fostering enduring relationships with like-minded business partners, ONYX Hospitality Group delivers unparalleled experiences in a dynamic and competitive market, meeting the ever-evolving demands of travellers.

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AFERIY Unveils Next-Generation Portable Power Station Nomad1800 at CES

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LAS VEGAS, US – Media OutReach Newswire – 16 January 2026 – As the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2026 officially opened, AFERIY, an innovative global brand in the portable clean energy sector, announced the launch of its next-generation portable power station, the Nomad1800, drawing widespread attention from industry professionals and the media.

More Compact Size, Greater Power Output

The AFERIY Nomad1800 keeps the same battery capacity while boosting power output by 50% through system and structural optimization. Weighing 11.6 kg, it is about 10% lighter than the previous model.

Despite its lighter design, it delivers 1800 W rated AC output (peak 3600 W), powering appliances like rice cookers, kettles, car refrigerators, and induction cooktops for camping, RVs, and home emergencies.

Fast Charging: 0–80% in 36 Minutes

The Nomad1800 adopts a hybrid fast-charging solution supporting both AC grid power and solar input. It can charge from 0% to 80% in just 36 minutes, significantly reducing charging time. This fast-charging capability allows the Nomad1800 to adapt to short stops, travel intervals, and unexpected power outages, providing users with efficient and predictable energy support.

Safe and Durable LiFePO₄ Battery

The Nomad1800 is equipped with a 1024 Wh lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO₄) battery supplied by EVE Energy. After more than 4,000 charge and discharge cycles, the battery retains up to 80% of its capacity.

An intelligent BMS monitors voltage, current, and temperature to ensure safe, stable operation even under high load or fast charging.

Industry-Leading Seven-Year Warranty

AFERIY offers the Nomad1800 an industry-leading seven-year warranty on core components and systems, reflecting confidence in its quality, safety, and durability.

Comprehensive Power and Safety Protection

The Nomad1800 features multiple output ports, enabling simultaneous power supply to multiple devices. It also supports UPS functionality, switching within 10 milliseconds during grid power interruptions to protect sensitive equipment such as computers and routers.

Under low-load operation, noise levels remain below 30 dB. In addition, the unit includes built-in LED lighting and an SOS flashing mode to enhance safety during nighttime and emergency use.

For more information, please visit the official AFERIY website or AFERIY on Amazon.

Hashtag: #AFERIY

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About AFERIY

AFERIY is a global brand focused on portable energy storage and clean energy solutions, committed to providing efficient, safe, and reliable power for outdoor activities, home emergency use, and professional applications.

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