FINTECH MANPOWER DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA-PACIFIC FINANCIAL CENTERS WITH A FOCUS ON ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND BIG DATA PROFESSIONALS

29 28 Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Talent Development in Asia Pacific 87. https://www.sgsep.com.au/assets/main/SGS-Economics-and-Planning-Economic-performance-fo-asutralias-cities-and- regions-report.pdf (p.19) 88. https://www.afr.com/technology/australia-faces-a-pandemic-led-crunch-in-ai-industry-warns-20200709-p55aiy 89. https://www.afr.com/technology/tech-talent-crunch-hits-home-amid-border-closures-20210422-p57ll8 2.6 SYDNEY As of 2016, there were 88,451 employees in the finance industry in Sydney, accounting for 17.7% of total employment. The Financial & Insurance Services made up 15.1% of Sydney’s economy in 2017- 18. 87 2.6.1 Supply and demand of AI, big data, and data analytics talent Along with the growing ecosystem of technology startups in the city, Sydney is also transforming itself into a technology hub. It is the focal point for businesses in Australia, and AI is one of the fastest growing sub-sectors of the IT industry in Sydney. 88 Observing that the demand for AI and machine learning services has been skyrocketing, the country's startups are racing against each other to recruit the best talent with the right skills. However, the supply of AI and big data talent has not been able to meet the surging demand. In the past, Australia has always been welcoming immigrants with skills to increase its labor force by offering them easy access to its work visa and permanent residency. However, there is now a demand for these tech-savvy talents globally. It is expected that Australia needs about 156,000 new technology workers by 2025 to ensure that its labor shortage does not have any adverse impacts on the country’s economic growth. 89 83. European Union. (2019). Overview of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Japan. Tokyo: Delegation of the European Union to Japan 84. https://www8.cao.go.jp/cstp/english/moonshot/top.html 85. https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/With-eye-on-Amazon-and-Google-Japan-joins-Asia-data-center-race 86. Peyton, A. (2017, May 18). Tokyo turns up volume in foreign fintech talent hunt. | Fintech Futures. | https://www.fintechfutures. com/2017/05/tokyo-turns-up-volume-in-foreign-fintech-talent-hunt/ language and encouraging researchers from overseas to take up management positions in Japan. 83 The Government has also been relieving some of the barriers for technology skilled immigrants in order to let them get permanent residency easier. These include shortening the residency period in Japan from five to one year, as well as relaxing the Japanese language requirement. These policies would facilitate tech companies and startups to recruit more foreign talent so as to compensate for the shortage of AI and data analytics talent in Japan. The Japanese Government also initiated policy programs to tackle future talent issues. The Japanese Moonshot Program, a research and development initiative, promotes high-impact R&D aiming to address future societal issues. As for AI development, the program also involves multiple universities and government collaborations to educate the future generation to meet the needs of the AI industry. 84 Another plan is related to foreign investments in data centers in Japan. The Government's Growth Strategy Council will offer tax breaks and other assistance to foreign investors, and the Council hopes to provide a stable supply of data-related jobs for the country. 85 Tokyo is a major financial center in Asia but there is yet a comprehensive manpower policy to address the AI and big data talent gap in the finance industry. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) has launched some initiatives to attract technology companies to Tokyo to encourage the development of high-value operations in the city. TMG also launched projects to attract technology companies in the fields of fintech and asset management to locate their headquarters and R&D centers in the Special Zone for Asian Headquarters. 86