HONG KONG—Hundreds of millions of newly connected consumers are giving Asian tech firms a leg up against Silicon Valley in key emerging technologies.

“AI is the new electricity. Whatever industry you work in, I think AI will likely transform it.”
Andrew Ng, Stanford University professor

Wall Street Journal’s D.Live Asia conference

At The Wall Street Journal’s D.Live Asia conference on Friday, Asia’s top technology investors and companies outlined how information gleaned from a massive and growing smartphone user base has informed the continent’s pursuits in artificial intelligence, a type of machine learning that needs troves of consumer data to evolve.

A Tech World’s Obsession

Artificial intelligence, a field that includes voice-activated digital assistants, driverless cars and robotics, is one of the tech world’s current obsessions. But the sheer number of web users in Asia compared with the U.S. and Europe, combined with deeper knowledge of local markets, is creating a dynamic where user feedback—more so than raw engineering power—has become an important asset.