Southeast Asia (SEA) is the third largest contributor to the Asia Pacific economy after China and Japan with  economies forecast to grow at 5 percent annually till 2020 while urban population is already growing by c.2.2 percent a year and the middle income population is set to increase by 70 million or 9 percent CAGR by 2020.

These strong underlying social-economic trends are underpinning the demand for real estate in the region and the adoption of emerging technologies, such as automation, artificial intelligence and rising connectivity, has the potential to allow Southeast Asian countries to leapfrog ahead of other developing nations to transform how people work, live, play and travel.

“In many ways, new technologies will allow people to bypass current constraints and leapfrog into greater efficiency, says Chris Fossick, Managing Director for Singapore and Southeast Asia at JLL. “The impact on real estate and infrastructure in Southeast Asia is likely to be positive and transformational. If harnessed effectively, the changes will bring improved productivity, income levels and quality of life to the population.”

While automation and artificial intelligence will eliminate some jobs, new jobs are likely to be created. Adoption of flexible working will continue to rise and by 2030, co-working spaces could make up 10 to 15 percent of office stock in Southeast Asia, compared to only 1 to 5 percent today.

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