Thai digital sector expected to grow to B3tn by 2027

Thailand’s digital industry is expected to be worth 3 trillion baht by 2027, up from a projected 2.69 trillion baht this year.

The growth is attributed to emerging technology, especially artificial intelligence (AI), according to a digital industry survey and assessment for 2024 and a three-year forecast by the Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa) and IMC Institute.

Kasama Kongsmak, interim senior executive vice-president at depa, said that for 2025-2027, the digital services sector is expected to lead industry growth, with annual increases of 10–14%.

The hardware and smart devices segment is projected to grow by 6-7% per year, followed by the software industry at 4-6% and digital content at 1-5%.

In 2027, the combined value of these four key sectors is forecast to reach around 3 trillion baht. This upward trend reflects the growing influence of emerging technologies, particularly AI, which will be a supporting factor for increased purchasing demand.

Last year, the digital industry expanded by 23.4% compared with 2023, reaching a total market value of 2.49 trillion baht.

According to Thanachart Numnonda, director of the IMC Institute, in 2024 the hardware and smart devices sector recorded the highest growth among Thailand’s digital industries, expanding by 26.6% to a total value of 1.85 trillion baht.

This surge was driven by the global economic recovery and rising demand for smart devices.

Thailand’s imports of smart devices rose by 34.4%, amounting to 624 billion baht, while exports increased by 23%, totalling 1.22 trillion baht.

Mr Thanachart said export growth last year is expected to contribute to market speculation about the US plan to raise its import tariffs, prompting a surge of US orders in advance of the hike.

In 2024, the software industry experienced more modest growth of 8.46%, with a total market value of 233 billion baht, comprising 145 billion baht from software services, up 8.57%, and 88.1 billion baht from software products, a gain of 8.26%.

Domestically produced software for local use was valued at 173 billion baht, up 8.38%, while exports reached 2.63 billion baht, a gain of 8.80%, and imports totalled 57.9 billion baht, increasing 8.68%.

Digital services grew 19.5%, totalling 368 billion baht, driven by continuously increasing demand for digital services, particularly e-retail valued at 117 billion baht, up 46.3%, and e-logistics valued at 109 billion baht, a gain of 17.6%.

Meanwhile, the digital content industry grew by 14.4% to 50.6 billion baht, and the software sector increased 8.46%, reaching 233 billion baht. These figures underscore the accelerating momentum of Thailand’s digital transformation and the growing importance of technology-driven industries in the national economy.

Expanding Digital Workforce

The survey also found the software industry workforce rose 23.8% last year to 175,254 people.

Digital services employed 86,177 people (growth of 6.23%), while hardware and smart devices employed 305,875 people (a decrease of 5.05%), due to production restructuring and increased automation technology adoption.

The survey also analysed the impact of US import tariff increases on Thailand’s digital industry, which could have both positive and negative effects on Thailand’s digital exports and imports, particularly for the hardware and smart devices industry which relies heavily on exports.

According to Pathom Indarodom, board member of the Digital Council for Economy and Society of Thailand, Thailand has the potential to grow its digital industry amid ongoing technological competition between the US and China.

Credit: Bangkokpost.com

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