EP 337 – Why Investing in AI Skills Is Crucial to Stay Competitive – John Lombard – CEO APAC at NTT DATA

by Michael Waitze | Sep 20, 2024

In this episode of the Asia Tech Podcast, ⁠John Lombard⁠, CEO for APAC at ⁠NTT DATA⁠, shared his leadership journey and key insights gained from a career spanning consulting, international business, and technology. John also discussed the future of AI and its transformative potential, comparing it to the impact of electricity.

Some of the topics John discussed in more detail include:

The importance of flexibility, cultural awareness, and the ability to make informed decisions based on past cycles
He emphasized that AI will be human-led in the near term, supporting rather than replacing human intelligence
The growing demand for lightweight, specialized AI models
John further stressed NTT DATA’s commitment to sustainability, particularly in reducing energy consumption in data centers and developing green technologies.
The need for companies and individuals to invest in AI skills

Read the best-effort transcript

Read the best-effort transcript below (This technology is still not as good as they say it is…):

Stay Informed: Subscribe to the ATP Newsletter

Receive the latest updates directly in your inbox
and stay up to date with the most recent technological innovations across the Asia-Pacific region

Latest Episodes:

EP 417 – AI Agents Can Think and Act. Is Your Business Ready? – Raymond Ngan, Appian

Mar 11, 2026

For many years, automation inside businesses followed simple rules. If something happened, a system performed the next predefined step. That model created enormous efficiencies, but it was limited by rigid logic and narrow workflows. Today, a new generation of artificial intelligence is emerging that can reason about problems, plan tasks, and take action across multiple systems.

EP 416 – Is B2B FinTech Quietly Running Asia’s Economy? – Raunak Dembla and Daniel Keki

Mar 4, 2026

FinTech headlines often focus on consumer apps, but the bigger economic story in Asia may be happening in business finance. B2B fintech targets the problems that shape real growth: helping companies get paid, manage working capital, move money across supply chains, and access services like lending, payments, and treasury in a reliable way.

EP 415 – If Cyber Attacks Move at Light Speed, Can Humans Defend? – Guy Brown and Tony Jarvis

Feb 25, 2026

Automated traffic is starting to outweigh human traffic online, and a growing share of it is not harmless. Attacks are no longer occasional or manual—they are constant, adaptive, and increasingly powered by AI.