Gemini app use in Southeast Asia more than doubles

Active users of Google's Gemini app in Southeast Asia have more than doubled over the past year, marking the fastest adoption pace for any Google app in the region, according to the company.

The figures come from Google's first Gemini Southeast Asia Report, which examined usage across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The growth reflects strong take-up among younger users and heavy use in local languages, Google said.

Nearly 40% of Southeast Asia's population is under 25, and younger users are leading adoption of the chatbot, according to the report. They make more requests, hold longer conversations with Gemini and write more detailed prompts than older age groups.

Language has emerged as a central factor in that adoption. Almost 70% of prompts submitted to Gemini in Southeast Asia are written in native languages, led by Vietnam at 89%, Thailand at 87% and Indonesia at 84%, Google said.

Google also pointed to external benchmarking from the Southeast Asia Holistic Evaluation of Language Models, or SEA-HELM. According to the company, Gemini ranked as the best-performing large language model overall for Southeast Asian languages in that evaluation.

Mobile use

Usage patterns in the region show a strong preference for smartphones. Some 75% of Gemini requests in Southeast Asia come from mobile devices, highlighting the importance of mobile-first access in markets where handsets are often the main route to the internet, Google said.

Users are also relying on formats beyond typed text. More than 40% of prompts in the region come through voice commands, photos and video uploads, while voice alone accounts for 10% of prompts, according to the company.

This suggests Gemini's role in Southeast Asia extends beyond conventional chatbot use. The report said people use the app for everyday tasks, including summarising documents, organising unstructured information, seeking advice and recommendations, and troubleshooting practical problems step by step.

Creative output

About 40% of Gemini queries in Southeast Asia ask the system to create new material rather than retrieve or summarise information, Google said. Those requests include image generation, music creation, video generation and document writing.

Over the past year, users in Southeast Asia have generated 5 billion images with Nano Banana, Google's image generation model, according to the company. They have also created nearly 1 million songs since the introduction of Lyria 3, Gemini's music generation model, in the region.

Google described Gemini as increasingly embedded in work, study and daily life across Southeast Asia. Users often turn to the app both as a research assistant for dense material and as a source of ideas for gifts, travel plans and personal decisions, it said.

The report also offers a view of how AI products are gaining traction in linguistically diverse markets. Southeast Asia is home to hundreds of languages, and vendors have faced pressure to show that large language models can perform well beyond English and a handful of major global languages.

A Senior Executive at AI Singapore said local understanding matters if AI tools are to gain broad and lasting use in the region.

"AI adoption happens when technology feels native, not translated. In a region as linguistically rich as Southeast Asia, models must understand local context deeply to be used effectively - whether that's for learning, nuance-heavy writing or complex business brainstorming. Gemini's strong standing on our SEA-HELM evaluation framework demonstrates its ability to navigate the complex linguistic realities of the region. It is encouraging to see this success demonstrate how the unique cultural and linguistic identities of Southeast Asia are being meaningfully woven into the fabric of global AI development," said Dr Leslie Teo, Senior Director of AI Products at AI Singapore.

Agent push

Alongside the usage data, Google said it is extending Gemini Spark to local languages for Gemini Advanced subscribers in Southeast Asia. The tool is designed to handle tasks across Workspace services including Gmail, Docs and Slides.

The move builds on features already used in the region, including Nano Banana, Canvas and custom Gems. Google framed the launch as part of a wider effort to make Gemini a more active assistant for the region's roughly 600 million people.

The focus on Southeast Asia comes as technology groups compete to secure users in fast-growing digital markets, where mobile access, youthful demographics and language diversity can shape product design as much as raw model performance. Google's latest figures suggest local language support and mobile-centred use are becoming decisive factors in how AI tools spread across the region.