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The AI-Ready Workforce

2026 Talent & Hiring Guide

Southeast Asia has an AI capability gap, and it's widening. This guide shows how to close it on two fronts at once: hiring the AI talent you're missing, and getting the team you already have working with AI.
  • PDF · 19 pages
  • 6 SEA markets
  • 23 named sources
  • Free
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The AI-Ready Workforce: 2026 Talent & Hiring Guide cover
64%of working-age Singaporeans use AI
+240%growth in AI Agent Engineer postings
Why now

The gap is already here

People have adopted AI faster than the organisations they work for. That mismatch is the problem this guide sets out to solve.

64%of working-age Singaporeans use AI2nd highest AI diffusion in the world, behind only the UAE
72%of firms haven't adopted AIThe employer side of the gap
+240%growth in AI Agent Engineer postings across AsiaThe fastest-growing role, one that barely existed in 2023
80Mworkers across ASEAN exposed to AIRoles that AI will reshape across the region

The Singapore situation, in one view

Workers are far ahead of their employers, and most haven't been trained for what's coming.

Workers using AI64%
Employers using AI28%
54%of staff report no recent training
Inside the guide

Six chapters, from context to action

19 pages grounded in regional labour data, with 23 named, dated sources. Here's what each chapter covers.

Part 1 · Set the scene
01

A Shared Foundation

Common language first, so leaders, HR and hiring managers are talking about the same thing.

  • AI, generative AI and agentic AI, defined
  • Use cases already deployed in Singapore and Southeast Asia
02

The Regional Complication

Southeast Asia isn't one market, and the rules aren't one rulebook.

  • AI exposure, market by market
  • Regulation on a spectrum, from voluntary framework to binding law
03

The Singapore Situation

A close look at the gap between how workers and employers use AI.

  • 64% of workers vs 28% of employers
  • 54% of staff report no recent training
Part 2 · The two tracks
04

Track 1: Hire

The AI roles that have moved from nice-to-have to core hires, and where to find the people to fill them.

  • Ten AI roles now core to the team
  • Tapping cross-border talent pools
05

Track 2: Operate

What working with an AI teammate actually looks like, day to day.

  • What an AI teammate handles day to day
  • A real staffing-peak scenario, walked through
Part 3 · In practice
06

Both Tracks in Practice

Two teams, one week. How each put the playbook to work in a different way.

  • One team changed how work is assigned
  • One team changed where it hires
The pivot

Two moves, run in parallel

Hiring alone is too slow. Upskilling alone leaves gaps. The guide pairs both, with a specialist partner behind each track.

Track 1

Hire

Bring in people who already have the AI capabilities you need, locally or from across the region.

  • Hire for practical, hands-on skills
  • Fill the emerging AI roles
  • Look for evidence that candidates really use AI
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Track 2

Operate

Equip the team you already have with agentic tools and the skills to work alongside them.

  • Hand routine tasks to agentic tools
  • Develop your people's skills as roles change
  • Make AI a day-to-day teammate
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About the guide

Built on real data

Grounded in regional labour data, with every source named and dated so you can check the numbers yourself.

Format
PDF
Length
19 pages
Coverage
6 SEA markets
Sources
23 named, dated
Price
Free
Co-published by
Glints TalentHub × Gutsy by Payboy

Markets covered

  • Singapore
  • Malaysia
  • Indonesia
  • Philippines
  • Vietnam
  • Thailand

Data drawn from

  • ILO
  • Microsoft
  • Singapore Ministry of Manpower
  • SkillsFuture Singapore
  • PwC
  • Deloitte Southeast Asia
  • + 17 more inside

The AI-Ready Workforce: 2026 Talent & Hiring Guide is co-published by Glints TalentHub and Gutsy by Payboy. Data drawn from ILO, Microsoft, Singapore's Ministry of Manpower, SkillsFuture Singapore, PwC, Deloitte Southeast Asia and other named sources listed inside the guide.

Build Your AI-Ready Workforce Now

AI adoption is moving faster than most organisations can plan for. Get the guide, then talk to TalentHub about hiring the AI talent you need across Southeast Asia.

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