Taiwan hosts WITSA Global AI Summit for second year, launches global AI index

台灣連續第二年主辦WITSA全球AI高峰會，並發布全球AI指數

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan hosted the WITSA Global AI Summit for the second consecutive year Tuesday, bringing technology leaders, government officials, and industry representatives from around the world together to discuss AI development and the launch of a new framework for evaluating national AI ecosystems.

The two-day summit at the Grand Hotel was organized by the World Innovation, Technology and Services Alliance and hosted by the Taiwan Innovative Software and Services Association. The event was held under the theme “AI Alive, Beyond the Future.”

WITSA, founded in 1978, is an alliance of technology industry associations from more than 80 economies. Its members represent more than 90% of the global ICT market, according to the organization. A major focus of this year's summit was the launch of the WITSA Global AI Index, described by WITSA as the first industry-led benchmark of national AI ecosystem maturity.

The summit also marked the launch of the inaugural WITSA Global AI Awards, recognizing achievements in seven categories: AI infrastructure, talent, entrepreneurship, use cases, data, public policy, and investment.

Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), in a video message, said the summit's focus on sovereign AI, hardware-software integration, and intelligent robotics is closely aligned with Taiwan's AI development strategy. She said the government is implementing the Ten AI Initiatives Promotion Plan approved by the Cabinet in January.

Hsiao said Taiwan is expanding computing capacity and strengthening data governance as part of efforts to develop sovereign AI. The government is also working to build traditional Mandarin AI training data that reflects Taiwan's cultural characteristics and can support domestic AI model development.

She also highlighted Taiwan's efforts to integrate AI with hardware and develop intelligent robotics for applications including health care, hospitality, logistics, and disaster response. At the same time, Hsiao said Taiwan needs to ensure that AI development is accompanied by digital equity and strong governance, including privacy protections under the AI Basic Act.

WITSA Chairman Dato' Dr. Sean Seah said the new index is intended to change how economies assess their AI development. “The index is not just a benchmark but a map,” Seah said, describing it as a tool that can help governments, businesses, investors, and other stakeholders identify gaps and determine how to move forward.

Seah said economies have plenty of narratives about their AI ambitions but need a standardized assessment of what they have actually built. The index provides an “honest mirror” for governments, he said, showing their current AI capabilities rather than simply measuring their aspirations.

Seah also emphasized that the index is intended to go beyond measurement. “A diagnosis without a prescription is only half” of the solution, he said, explaining that WITSA wants the framework to help member economies move from identifying weaknesses to developing practical strategies for improvement.

WITSA describes the index as an industry-led initiative rather than one developed by a single government or technology vendor. The organization says the framework is supported by practitioner input from its member associations and an independent expert panel.

Moving from AI hardware to complete solutions

TISSA Chairman Dr. Brian Shen (沈柏延) said Taiwan's greatest advantage remains its highly integrated technology supply chain, but the economy needs to use that foundation to develop stronger software capabilities.

“Taiwan's greatest strength is its world-class supply chain in semiconductors, servers, networking, and ICT hardware,” Shen said in an interview on the sidelines of the summit. “The next step is to go beyond hardware manufacturing and turn those strengths into competitive advantages in AI software, industry applications, and integrated solutions.”

Shen said Taiwan does not need to compete with the largest US technology companies across every area of AI but should focus on sectors where it has established expertise and global connections. “This is a turning point. Technology is creating new opportunities, and we need to change with it.”

One of Taiwan's biggest challenges is turning individual AI projects into scalable products, Shen said. “AI implementation in Taiwan is very diversified, but many applications are still not mature products,” he said. “We have many proof-of-concept projects, but a proof of concept is not a product.”

The next step, he said, is to transform successful AI use cases into repeatable products and services that can be marketed internationally. “We need to help Taiwan's software companies move from one project experience to products and solutions that can compete globally,” Shen said.

Shen also pointed to Taiwan's strong showing in the inaugural WITSA Global AI Awards as evidence that Taiwan’s AI capabilities extend beyond hardware. “The recognition shows that the world increasingly sees Taiwan not only as a major supplier of AI hardware, but also as an important partner in AI technology, applications, and industry innovation,” he said.

“Taiwan has a unique advantage because we can integrate semiconductors, computing infrastructure, cloud services, cybersecurity, software, and deep industry knowledge into a comprehensive AI ecosystem.” Shen said the awards also demonstrate the need to move successful AI applications toward commercialization.

“The seven WITSA awards we previously earned are important because they show what Taiwan has already achieved,” he said. “But many of these are government use cases. Our next goal is for software companies to turn these successful use cases into products.”

He said TISSA plans to use WITSA's international network to help Taiwanese companies gain exposure in overseas markets and exchange experience with AI developers worldwide. “We need to use the WITSA network to show Taiwan's talent, products, and successful AI use cases globally, while also learning from international experiences and best practices,” Shen said.

WITSA's broader agenda reflects the same shift from AI potential to implementation. The 2026 summit's program includes discussions on sovereign AI, AI hardware-software integration, intelligent robotics, policy, investment, and talent.

For Taiwan, the discussions underscore a broader challenge: how to turn its central role in the global semiconductor and AI hardware supply chain into a stronger position in AI software, applications, and services.

Shen said the objective is ultimately to move Taiwan beyond supplying components and toward developing complete AI solutions for global markets. “Taiwan's opportunity is to build world-class AI software and industry solutions on top of its world-class hardware foundation,” he said.