Artificial intelligence has moved well into national strategy territory. Government-backed AI ecosystems are taking the lead, and Asia-Pacific has become a proving ground.

Many argue that red tape and government intervention can slow innovation. But in several economies, the state is taking a bigger hand to fast-track AI adoption – especially across Northeast Asia, according to Andrew Sotiropoulos (pictured), senior vice president and general manager for Asia-Pacific at NetApp Inc.

 “What we are seeing in some of the countries is government playing a stronger role in trying to create an ecosystem and environment where the AI adoption can be accelerated. You see that in Korea, Taiwan [and] Japan,” he said. “Government has an important role to play, especially around data sovereignty and supporting neocloud growth adoption in each of the countries.”

Sotiropoulos spoke with theCUBE’s Christophe Bertrand at the NetApp Insight 2025 event, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed how government-backed AI ecosystems are shaping enterprise AI adoption across the Asia-Pacific region. (* Disclosure below.) 

Government-backed AI gains momentum across Asia-Pacific

For decision-makers, government-backed AI becomes practical only when data location, access and cost are predictable. Across the Asia-Pacific region, the constant is shared: Governments, enterprises and consumers are figuring out how to deploy and absorb technology, according to  Sotiropoulos.

“There are constants within the geography … which [is] how governments, customers as well as consumers are grappling with the deployment and absorption of technology,” he said. “What changes and what is different are cultural nuances and where each economy is and how governments … are seeking to adapt and be able to serve their citizens as best as possible.”

For NetApp, data sovereignty drives architecture choices: neoclouds inside borders, consistent privacy controls and workload placement that balances latency, portability and security. But in regulated sectors, presence on the ground is matters as much as a global mindset, Sotiropoulos said.

 “You have to be local. You have to partner with the local entities because they have strong engagement and reputations within,” he said. “You can go right throughout the geography where you have to be local as well as global, and that ambidexterity … is one of the recipes for success.”

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the NetApp Insight 2025 event:

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the NetApp Insight event. Neither NetApp, the sponsor of theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE