A push for AI sustainability is also expected given the vast global market opportunities for startups, reports the Bangkok Post.
"By 2026, the AI industry is expected to advance towards more agentic, autonomous and multi-functional AI systems," Sathapon Patanakuha, chief executive of Guardian AI Lab, an AI-driven solutions firm, said at a seminar on the 2026 outlook held by the AI Entrepreneur Association of Thailand.
Agentic AI refers to autonomous agents that can run tasks and communicate through shared protocols within systems.
Mr Sathapon said the AI industry is moving towards multi‑agent, interoperable networks that operate seamlessly across systems.
Agentic commerce is an example, with AI enabling progressively automated end‑to‑end shopping journeys, with full autonomy expected to emerge over time. This represents a new model of e‑commerce and marks a major shift from traditional "click‑based" shopping to AI‑driven autonomous purchasing.
Moreover, when agents communicate with other agents, the interactions become more complex and can introduce new security concerns.
"We need to identify whether an agent is genuine ‒ what we might call ’Know Your Agent’ -- and we should start seeing this emerge next year," he said.
Winn Voravuthikunchai, chief executive of Botnoi Group, said the company’s core mission is to address societal challenges in areas where human experts are in short supply ‒ such as nursing and teaching ‒ by creating AI agents that can help fill those gaps.
He said chatbots, voicebots, digital human kiosks and humanoid robots are simply different interface formats for the same underlying AI agents.
Botnoi’s technology has evolved from a friendly, conversational chatbot into professional‑grade agents, including an AI nurse designed for patient screening.
Mr Winn said AI should augment human work, not replace it. The future lies in multi‑purpose agents capable of performing diverse tasks, he said.
The return on investment is already visible, particularly in healthcare where AI agents help reduce the workload of nurses by screening patients, an impact that is both measurable and meaningful, said Mr Winn.
Future agents must be equipped with tools and able to collaborate with one another through agent‑to‑agent interaction. This orchestration of multiple agents will be a major trend next year, he said.
Mr Winn also highlighted the importance of building platforms that allow non‑technical users, such as sales and marketing teams, to create their own AI agents to boost individual productivity.
This vision is driving the next move to empower users to build agents for marketing, sales, and other business functions, he said.
This influence led to the development of the Botnoi.ai platform, designed to help businesses enhance employee productivity, said Mr Winn.
AI FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Warodom Khamphanchai, chief executive of AltoTech Global, an AI-driven building efficiency tech company, said energy optimisation is emerging as one of the strongest and most sustained opportunities in the market, driven by global commitments to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
AltoTech’s core technology focuses on creating "self‑driving buildings" capable of automatically adjusting lighting, cooling and power consumption to maximise energy savings.
"The total electricity cost across Thailand is 700 billion baht. Saving just 10% amounts to 70 billion," he said, adding this optimisation is highly complex, relying on multi-agent systems.
Kla Tangsuwan, chief executive of Wisesight, warned that rising AI investment resembles past bubbles in the e‑commerce business and affiliate marketing, urging companies to be more selective and disciplined in how they allocate capital.
AI startups and businesses must focus on use cases that can generate revenue, reduce costs, or improve productivity.
Mr Kla added Thailand must think beyond its borders, as domestic capital alone is insufficient to support long‑term AI growth.
"Attracting foreign investment will be essential, especially as AI startups tend to secure higher valuations in global markets," he said.