Thailand launches free platform to increase AI penetration. Experts: Skills training should be strengthened

The Thai government launched a platform called "TH-AI Passport" to provide free use of paid versions of AI tools, hoping to expand AI penetration. However, experts believe that what Thailand really needs is to cultivate people’s ability to use AI, rather than just providing free accounts; outsiders also question the way to evaluate the benefits of the plan.

The Thai government launched the free AI integration platform "TH-AI Passport" at the end of August. After completing registration and identity verification, people can use AI models from multiple technology companies through a single platform, including ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude and Perplexity, covering functions such as text dialogue, in-depth research, programming, image and video generation, etc.

The Thai government stated that it plans to allow 5 million Thai people over the age of 15 to use it for free for one year, and combine it with AI online courses to allow users to accumulate points through learning and obtain usage credits for higher-end models.

Pun Moliphun, a 25-year-old freelance photographer, is one of the users. He told CNA that using paid tools for free was the main reason why he registered, but it was not until about a month after registering that he started to actually use the platform, which had nothing to do with his work content.

Paine said: "I decided to register because the government provides free services and the number of places is limited." He said that he only started using the platform to plan a trip to Morocco two weeks ago, checking visa requirements, travel seasons and itineraries. He added that he was already used to using ChatGPT and had accumulated personalized settings, so he did not want to spend time retraining another model.

Paine emphasized to Central News Agency that the platform still has practical uses, especially "the free use of AI generation tools that originally required payment." However, he also pointed out that because the system is provided by the government, he has concerns about personal privacy and digital security, so he will avoid entering private information such as health.

According to data released by the Thai government in early September, approximately 1.5 million people have registered to use the “TH-AI Passport” platform. Thailand’s Ministry of Digital Economy and Society stopped publishing daily active user data three days after the platform was launched. Minister Chaichanok Chidchob later said that there were about 600,000 simultaneous users every day.

Thai experts have questioned the effectiveness of the "TH-AI Passport" policy and pointed out that the government should pay more attention to training workers in AI skills than simply providing free accounts.

Thanachart Numnonda, a Thai AI expert and executive director of the IMC Institute, said in an interview with Central News Agency that the problem facing Thailand is not that the public cannot access AI, but how to help them improve their skills and apply AI to future jobs.

He said: "The government should teach people how to use AI in professional fields and improve work efficiency, rather than simply providing free accounts."

Tanachai pointed out that compared with tools from large technology companies such as ChatGPT, "TH-AI Passport" still has many functional limitations. For example, it cannot export content to Word, Excel or Google Workspace, and it also lacks some advanced features.

He believes that the current development of AI has shifted from chat robots to AI agent tools that can perform more tasks. If Thailand only provides basic chat and content generation services, it will be difficult to compete internationally.

Thanachai also questioned the effectiveness of training on the platform. According to his observation, the platform originally had a course and points system to encourage users to learn, but the participation was not ideal. Later, points could be obtained by just watching one or two minutes of videos. He believes that such a design is difficult to truly improve user skills.

Thai political analyst Mathis Lohatepanont expressed similar views. In September, he published an article in Fulcrum, a publication of the Singapore think tank ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, pointing out that the policy goals of the "TH-AI Passport" are not clear enough, and questioned whether the plan is "to help people who have not yet used AI to get started, or to allow experienced users to obtain more powerful tools."

He believes that the government should set measurable productivity indicators and improve the transparency of procurement procedures.

Thailand's opposition People's Party (People's Party) has said that there may be problems with the procurement conditions and advertising requirements of this approximately 1.6 billion baht project, and has requested an investigation. Relevant charges remain to be clarified.

Thanachai told Central News Agency that if Thailand wants to develop the AI ​​industry, it should shift its focus to local AI models and applications in specific fields, such as tourism, small and medium-sized enterprises and medical services, and ensure that data can be processed within Thailand to reduce dependence on international technology companies.

Regarding the effectiveness of the "TH-AI Passport", he believes that how the government explains the "TH-AI Passport" plan to the outside world and how it can be translated into actual work capabilities and productivity will be the key to testing the success of this policy.