Sasikarn, spokesperson for the Ruam Thai Sang Chart Party, is concerned that the AI bill is falling behind global developments. She proposes three measures to enhance AI governance and warns against focusing only on the 700 billion baht investment, stressing the urgent need to build digital security and protect data sovereignty.
On 19 Oct 2026 GMT+7, Ms. Sasikarn Watthanajan, spokesperson for the Ruam Thai Sang Chart Party and former deputy government spokesperson, commented on the government's draft Artificial Intelligence Act. She said it marks an important step in establishing Thailand's AI governance framework. However, she expressed concerns that the bill’s content and measures may not fully address risks from rapidly evolving technology, especially as Thailand is preparing to receive over 700 billion baht in foreign Data Center investments. She therefore proposed applying AI governance principles to elevate the bill through three key measures aimed at strengthening digital security, protecting citizens' data, and enhancing Thailand's capacity to regulate foreign technologies.
Ms. Sasikarn noted that many countries have seriously upgraded AI regulation, such as the European Union (EU), which enacted the “AI Act” to set standards for safety, transparency, and citizens’ rights protection. Meanwhile, the United States prioritizes AI within national security, reflecting that technological competition also involves setting rules to safeguard national interests.
Ms. Sasikarn said the Thai government's push for the AI Act is a good start and should be supported. However, there are issues needing further consideration, particularly the appropriateness of penalties. If fines are set only between 1 to 5 million baht, this may not sufficiently motivate large tech companies with massive capital to strictly comply with the law. Therefore, she recommends considering penalties proportional to business size and the severity of violations.
Additionally, Ms. Sasikarn proposed three ways to upgrade Thailand’s AI laws and regulatory measures:
1. Require AI-generated content to bear clear symbols or markings. Adapting the EU’s transparency approach to Thai law, especially for Generative AI technologies capable of producing realistic images, sound, and video, standards should mandate labeling and embedding digital watermarks in AI-created content as appropriate. This will help the public distinguish real from synthetic content, reducing risks of deception, identity forgery, and technology-related crimes.
2. Enhance AI governance mechanisms with proactive safety checks before deploying high-risk technologies. By studying AI safety testing and evaluation methods from the UK and Singapore, Thailand can develop systems to detect vulnerabilities, simulate cyberattack tests, and assess data risks—particularly for AI systems linked to critical infrastructure or sensitive citizen data—to prevent unauthorized data access or transfer.
3. Set conditions to promote technology transfer and develop Thai personnel alongside foreign investment. Given the over 700 billion baht investment, benefits to Thailand’s economy should go beyond merely using land and energy for Data Centers. The government should push for knowledge transfer, research and development, AI workforce training, and support for Thai entrepreneurs to develop their own technologies in the future. Moreover, strict measures must protect Thai data in accordance with Thai law, regardless of which service provider stores or processes the data.
Ms. Sasikarn concluded that Thailand must elevate its role from merely an investment recipient to a country that sets its own technology standards and rules. Digital security and citizens’ personal data represent critical national interests that must not be overlooked.
“The 700 billion baht investment may be good economic news, but it will truly benefit Thailand only if we can set rules, protect citizens’ data, and build knowledge among Thai people. Technology is advancing rapidly; if the government does not urgently establish strong safeguards now, we may unknowingly be handing over the keys to the country’s data to others,” Ms. Sasikarn said.