Asia Tech Wire (Feb 20) -- Small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) in mainland China have the highest willingness to invest in AI technology globally, according to an HSBC survey.

The latest findings of an HSBC survey of SMEs in eight major markets around the world show that 68% of mainland Chinese companies have expressed an interest in investing in AI technology to improve operational efficiency, the highest proportion of any market surveyed globally.

Meanwhile, more than 80% of mainland China companies are investing more in digital talent or retraining their staff to advance their own digital intelligence transformation.

The survey interviewed 2,900 management and business decision makers from SMEs in mainland China, Hong Kong, India, Mexico, Singapore, the UAE, the UK and the US.

According to the report, SMEs in mainland China show a strong sense of enterprise and willingness to try out new technologies, with around 90% of mainland China companies surveyed confident that they will be able to keep up with the pace of new technologies within 10 years, which is a leading figure across all the markets surveyed.

Joseph Ma, Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial Banking at at HSBC Bank (China) Company Limited, said China is one of the countries in the world where digital technology is developing most rapidly and being used most widely.

Ma noted that SMEs in mainland China are keeping pace with technological innovation and actively promoting digital transformation, which is also conducive to their expansion into the global market and maintaining international competitiveness.