{"slug": "thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031", "title": "Thailand Data Usage Outpaces Global Average by 2031", "summary": "Ericsson reports Thailand's smartphone data usage reached 34.4GB per month in 2025, exceeding the global average of 22GB, and projects it will rise to 56.1GB by 2031 against a global average of 40GB, driven by AI applications, extended reality, and video generation. Thailand's 5G subscribers are expected to grow from 33 million (36% of subscriptions) in 2025 to over 93 million (92%) by 2031, prompting significant capacity planning for network infrastructure.", "body_md": "### What happened\n\nThe Bangkok Post reports Ericsson finds Thailand's smartphone data usage at **34.4GB** per month in 2025, above the global average of **22GB** in 2025. Per the same report, Ericsson projects per-smartphone consumption to reach **56.1GB** per month by 2031 versus a projected global average of **40GB**. The Bangkok Post attributes the forecasted surge to **AI** applications, extended reality devices and video generation, and records Ericsson's estimate that AI uses roughly **eight times** more data than standard background traffic. The Bangkok Post also reports Thailand had about **33 million** 5G subscribers (about **36%** of subscriptions) in 2025, with a projection to more than **93 million** subscribers (**92%**) by 2031.\n\n### Editorial analysis - technical context\n\nIncreased use of high-bandwidth services such as XR, real-time video generation and large-scale AI inference typically raises both downlink and uplink demand, and often necessitates mid-band capacity for balanced coverage and throughput. Mid-band spectrum such as **3.5GHz** is commonly used in other markets to deliver the mix of speed and range required by these workloads.\n\n### Context and significance\n\nEditorial analysis: For network planners and infrastructure teams, the combination of higher per-device throughput and a near-universal 5G subscriber base materially shifts capacity planning - especially for backhaul, edge sites and interconnects. Reported projections that Thailand's 5G penetration could reach **92%** by 2031 imply a scale-up in concurrent high-bandwidth sessions compared with 2025 levels.\n\n### What to watch\n\nEditorial analysis: Observers should track regulatory moves on releasing **3.5GHz** spectrum, operator capital expenditure on mid-band and edge sites, and vendor announcements on XR- and AI-optimized network services. Also watch for operator reports that break down uplink versus downlink traffic to validate the Bangkok Post/Ericsson claim that AI and cloud syncs drive uploads.\n\n## Scoring Rationale\n\nRegional telecom forecast from Ericsson covering Thailand 5G and data usage through 2031, with AI-driven traffic as a cited driver. Useful context for network planners and infrastructure teams but is a vendor forecast rather than a frontier AI development or model release, placing it solidly in the minor-to-solid range.\n\nPractice with real Ad Tech data\n\n90 SQL & Python problems · 15 industry datasets\n\n[Active Search Campaigns by BudgetEasy](/problems/sql/active-search-campaigns-by-budget)\n\n[High CPC Clicks & Poor Landing PagesMedium](/problems/sql/high-cpc-clicks-poor-landing-page)\n\n[Campaign ROAS by Attribution ModelHard](/problems/sql/campaign-roas-by-attribution-model)\n\n250 free problems · No credit card\n\n[See all Ad Tech problems](/problems/datasets/adtech)", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031", "canonical_source": "https://letsdatascience.com/news/thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031-51748a0e", "published_at": "2026-06-24 23:48:15.659333+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-06-24 23:48:17.380767+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-infrastructure", "ai-products"], "entities": ["Ericsson", "Bangkok Post", "Thailand"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/thailand-data-usage-outpaces-global-average-by-2031.jsonld"}}