AI Needs Human Wisdom, Not Just Technology, Top CEOs Say

Two of Asia's top business leaders said that artificial intelligence, or AI, is only useful when people use it with clear goals and good judgment. DBS bank chief Tan Su Shan and TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi spoke at a major business event in Singapore on October 12. They shared their ideas at the first-ever DBS Asia Future Forward Conference, held at the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre. The event brought together leaders from tech, business, and finance to talk about how AI is changing the world.

Tan said that just adding AI to a business is not enough. She called this mistake 'AI lipstick,' meaning it looks good on the surface but does not really help. Instead, she said companies need to completely rethink the way they work. Only then, she said, can AI truly make a difference.

Tan also talked about how Asia has become a leader in using AI for real, everyday problems. She gave examples like helping elderly people at home and improving how hospitals and banks work. She said Asia has shown that AI can lead to 'good business outcomes and good human outcomes.' Her speech was connected to a new report from DBS about how to get real results from AI.

The report said that having access to AI technology is no longer what sets companies apart. What matters more is finding the right problems to solve, earning people's trust, and making sure AI connects to real-world results. The report said companies should start by deciding what outcome they want. Then they should build their tools, partnerships, and systems around that goal.

Tan also spoke about how countries need to work together if they want AI to succeed. She pointed out that different countries make different parts needed for AI. For example, Taiwan makes computer chips, South Korea makes memory parts, and raw materials come from China and Southeast Asia. 'If we don't cooperate, we will continue to have blockages in our AI supply chain,' she said.

She said countries can still protect their own data and AI models while staying connected through trade deals. She mentioned two agreements: the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, signed by 15 Asia-Pacific countries, and the Future of Investment and Trade Partnership. Tan said the world must avoid becoming too closed off, even as some countries try to limit trade. Staying connected, she argued, benefits everyone.

Tan ended her speech by saying AI has led people to imagine two very different futures. One is a scary world where machines take over. The other is a hopeful world where AI solves big problems like disease and poverty. She said humans must use 'good judgment, good wisdom, good creativity' to make sure AI leads humanity in the right direction.

TikTok's Chew Shou Zi also stressed that human judgment matters a lot when using AI. He brought up a famous example called the 'paperclip problem,' where a machine told to make paperclips keeps making them forever, ignoring everything else. Chew used this story to explain why AI needs to be guided by human values and common sense. He said the rules of right and wrong are 'very obvious' to humans, but not to machines.

On the topic of creativity, Chew said AI-made videos have not yet taken over on TikTok. Only a small percentage of views come from AI-generated content. He said people can usually tell when a video is made by AI, and many still prefer real, authentic content. 'People still want to see very real, very authentic things,' he said.

Chew also said the most important thing people can do right now is learn how to use AI tools themselves. He said TikTok encourages not just its engineers, but also its lawyers and office workers, to try AI products firsthand. Reading about AI is not enough — you have to use it to understand what it can and cannot do. He added that curiosity and hands-on practice are key to staying ahead in the age of AI.

Finally, Chew warned that AI also brings cybersecurity risks that people need to take seriously. He said users sometimes give AI agents permission to do things, like make purchases, without fully understanding how the technology works. Education about AI safety is important for everyone, not just tech experts. Understanding the limits of AI, he said, is just as important as learning how to use it.