3 Before 9: March 2, 2026

Vietnam's AI Act came into force yesterday, making it the first country in Southeast Asia with a comprehensive, enforceable AI regulatory framework. Modelled closely on the EU AI Act, it requires human oversight of generative AI systems, mandatory labelling of deepfakes and synthetic content, and commits the government to building national AI computing infrastructure and Vietnamese-language LLMs. The legislation was passed in December and had a March 1 effective date, meaning businesses operating in Vietnam are now in compliance territory whether they're ready or not.

Year The India AI Impact Summit wrapped last week with 88 countries, including the US, China, and Russia, signing the New Delhi AI Declaration and committing to develop AI for social and economic good. Adani announced a $100 billion commitment to build renewable-powered AI data centres across India by 2035, with a projected $150 billion downstream in server manufacturing and sovereign cloud. India separately earmarked $1.1 billion for a new state AI venture fund. Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, Sundar Pichai, Demis Hassabis, Mukesh Ambani, and Narendra Modi all shared the stage alongside Emmanuel Macron. India also formally joined the Pax Silica group, aligning with the US, UK, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, UAE, and Australia on AI infrastructure supply chains.

China A new Global AI Brain Race Report ranking 100+ nations on R&D output, infrastructure, talent readiness, governance, and economic integration has placed Singapore third globally, with the US first (82/100) and China second (59/100). India placed sixth, strong on talent but flagged as weak on infrastructure and governance. The ranking covers AI universities, funding environments, responsible AI practices, and academic strength across more than 100 countries.