Yasuthorn Lays Out 8-Strategy Blueprint to Drive Innovation-Led National Transformation

Deputy Prime Minister Yasuthorn Wongswaddi, who also serves as Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, unveiled Thailand's innovation transformation vision at the Matichon X AIS Forum 2026 on May 11th at Pullman King Power Hotel. He emphasized that while Thailand possesses numerous innovations, they lack proper integration with various sectors including economics, society, and international relations. The ministry will identify sectoral challenges and deploy innovation to address issues ranging from disaster management to environmental protection over the next four years.

The comprehensive action plan comprises eight strategic pillars covering all development dimensions:

1. Promoting an innovation ecosystem connecting universities, government, private sector, funding sources, and entrepreneurs while advancing intellectual property commercialization 2. Developing Thailand as a health and wellness hub, from herbal medicine and cosmetics to advanced medical technology 3. Establishing semiconductor industry foundations to support future industries like electric vehicles, AI, and next-generation communications 4. Driving the nation forward through AI and data under the "AI for ALL" concept 5. Investing in frontier technologies including quantum computing, space exploration, and green energy 6. Promoting security technology covering cybersecurity, national defense, disaster management, and Net Zero goals 7. Advancing anti-corruption technology toward digital government with comprehensive data transparency and public services 8. Transforming universities to world-class standards as knowledge-creation centers and developers of high-quality human resources

Yasuthorn emphasized that innovation originates from people, and everyone can create it. The first strategy focuses on building ecosystem mechanisms within Thailand, with the ministry handling education, research, and technology studies aligned with global changes while developing workforce skills accordingly. He stressed that education, research, and innovation must grow together, and while Thailand's research capacity isn't yet at full shelf capacity, researchers need space for trial and error while ensuring research addresses future opportunities. Yasuthorn called for collective efforts to establish automatic research infrastructure that would survive any change in political leadership, ensuring innovators, researchers, and practitioners can connect to generate continuous research and development leading to income generation and sustained innovation cycles, including technology transfer from abroad.