AI agents (digital workers) were initially promised to automate and free humans from tedious corporate tasks, according to the South China Morning Post's business section. However, Asian companies have found the reality to be the opposite in practice, with AI agents increasing workloads, creating new friction, and adding management layers. For example, Xiao Mengjie, an AI product marketing manager at a large tech company in Shanghai, discovered that AI agents would get into arguments over responsibilities, forming "digital bureaucracy." Mark Wee, COO of Conzi, a Singaporean hotel tech startup, also noted that AI agents struggle with complex cross-departmental hotel operations, requiring the integration of fragmented knowledge. Furthermore, demand for AI agents is growing among businesses in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia, but data security concerns and legacy technology systems are hindering adoption. Wang Jiangyu, a law professor at City University of Hong Kong, stated that governance mechanisms have failed to keep pace with technological development, and issues of accountability and alignment with human goals remain unresolved.