Last year, Hong Kong buzzed with the potential disruptions caused by generative AI. Despite this interest, current discussions in the education sector lack depth compared to those in Tokyo, Beijing, and Singapore. In 2018, Japan saw the publication of “AI vs. Children Who Cannot Read Their Textbooks,” which became a bestseller. Authored by Noriko Arai of Japan’s National Institute of Informatics, the book explores a well-funded project aiming for AI to pass the University of Tokyo’s exams. While the AI excelled in math and science, it struggled with emotional and cultural nuances in language tasks, highlighting the importance of emotional connectivity in education.

The Importance of Cultural Relevance in AI

The Education Bureau of Hong Kong recently introduced an AI curriculum in collaboration with Microsoft OpenAI, focusing mainly on combating cheating and personalizing instruction. However, this narrow focus misses the crucial aspect of adapting AI to local educational, psychological, and cultural contexts—a strategy emphasized by pedagogical leaders across Asia. For instance, the National University of Singapore is addressing these cultural mismatches with its SEA-LION project, aimed at better serving the Southeast Asian context.