KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8: While 56 per cent of Malaysia’s Artificial Intelligence natives (AI natives) believe that chatbots provide the fastest responses — the highest in the Asia Pacific (APAC) — 83 per cent still want the option to speak to a human agent when interactions feel disjointed, says Zoom.
“AI natives” is a term referring to a generation growing up with AI as a default part of their environment.
A new study by Zoom, the San Jose, California-headquartered company that provides various platforms for human connection, highlights the growing influence of ‘AI natives’ in APAC, individuals aged between 18 and 24 who have had early exposure to AI growing up, and are currently active users of the technology.
Zoom said this balance between efficiency and empathy reflects how AI natives are redefining the future customer experience, adding that in Malaysia, expectations for speed and human connection stand out.
The study conducted in July this year covered 2,551 respondents aged 18-45 in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan.
Lucas Lu, Head of Asia, Zoom, said AI natives in Asia are redefining expectations for how technology shapes their daily lives, whether as consumers or as part of the workforce.
“Growing up with AI has given them confidence in its potential, but also a sharper eye for its limitations,” he said.
Lu said organisations needed to understand that both AI natives and non-AI natives approach AI from very different perspectives and must design experiences that cater to both.
“Ultimately, winning loyalty in this new era will depend on striking a balance between speed and the irreplaceable value of human connection. Those who get it right will be best placed to build trust, unlock growth, and stay competitive with AI natives,” he said.
Both AI natives and non-AI natives in Malaysia place speed at the heart of resolution when engaging with customer experience channels.
Fifty-nine per cent of AI natives in Malaysia identify speed as the most important factor, and similarly, a nearly identical 56 per cent of non-AI natives in Malaysia share the same view.
“For businesses, this highlights a universal truth: the speed of resolution remains essential for retaining customers,” Zoom said.
However, the stakes for falling short are steep, especially with AI natives. When asked what would most likely cause them to lose loyalty to a brand, 63 per cent of AI natives in Malaysia cited slow or delayed responses as their top reason — the highest among all markets alongside India. These expectations also extend to the workplace, where 72 per cent of AI natives now expect AI to help them become faster and more productive at work by reducing repetitive tasks, compared to 59 per cent of non-AI natives.
For organisations, speed is now expected across every touchpoint — from customer interactions to daily workflows.
Malaysia’s AI natives are among APAC’s most digitally engaged, using an average of eight types of online platforms and services — from entertainment and social media to financial and workplace tools — higher than the regional average of 7.22.
Despite their high usage of digital channels, this group still places high importance on empathy when engaging with brands.
While more than three-quarters of AI natives (78 per cent) in Malaysia believe AI chatbots should be a standard feature in customer experience, nearly as many (73 per cent) continue to rely on human agents because they are more confident a person will understand their issues correctly, far higher than the regional average (61 per cent).
Even with their appetite for fast, AI-driven interactions, 68 per cent of AI natives feel that AI responses are often too generic, prompting them to seek human connection for clarity.
This expectation for understanding also extends to how information flows during customer interactions. Only 40 per cent of AI natives in Malaysia expect agents to have full context during handoffs, compared to 51 per cent of non-AI natives, suggesting that AI natives are more willing to tolerate some friction as long as speed and progress are maintained.
It is clear that while AI natives embrace efficiency, empathy and contextual understanding remain important to delivering quality experiences.
“In the era of agentic AI, Malaysian organisations need to be intentional about how technology is applied throughout the customer journey — knowing when AI should take the lead and when a human connection is essential to ensure a seamless experience. Done right, AI elevates self-service by making it faster and smarter, while enabling human agents to focus on delivering empathy and personalised care.
‘It’s this balance of efficiency and empathy that will define the next level of customer experience, and that’s exactly what AI natives across Asia are beginning to expect and demand,” Lu said.
AI at work is here to stay
As AI becomes increasingly integrated into daily life, the workplace is no exception. In Malaysia, AI adoption is widespread, with 98 per cent of respondents reporting using some form of AI at work.
AI natives most often use AI for idea generation and brainstorming (72 per cent), whereas non-AI natives lean on AI for more assistive and functional purposes, such as translating documents or simplifying administrative work, their highest-rated use case (62 per cent).
While adoption of AI at work is universal, expectations of AI differ across the two groups.For Malaysia’s AI natives, AI has become synonymous with opportunity.
Nearly a third of AI natives (31 per cent) strongly believe that being comfortable with AI will give them a clear edge in the job market, compared with just 18 per cent of non-AI natives.
AI natives also increasingly view AI as a lever for advancement, with 81 per cent of them saying employers should provide access to AI tools. This shows that many AI natives see AI fluency as the new measure of competitiveness that can accelerate individual growth.
Where AI natives expect AI to help them become more efficient by reducing repetitive tasks (72 per cent), non-AI natives place greater emphasis on practical support, like summarising conversations to help respond faster and more accurately (64 per cent).
Despite these differing expectations, both groups in Malaysia share the same biggest concern when using AI at work: data privacy and security (56 per cent AI natives vs 66 per cent non-AI natives).
For organisations, success will likely hinge on how they make transparency part of the user experience, rather than just a box to tick.
As AI becomes part of everyday work, the difference lies not in access to tools, but in how people use and trust them. Organisations that recognise these nuances and design AI tools that empower both AI natives and non-AI natives will be best positioned to succeed.
WE