Welcome to the first newsletter of 2026 of the Arts for Good Foundation. Last January in 2025, we were all stunned by the sudden rise of DeepSeek and the huge waves of change this open-source AI model could bring. A year later in 2026, it feels as though that we’re waiting out a buffer period before fully stepping into the new AI era.
I spent the bette part of this month learning about the AI application policies and blueprints across industries in Mainland China. Organized to achieve 2 years, 3 years, and 5 years goals in the coming years, these preparation points highlight a robust integration of AI as a core driver of transformation and societal advancement. Significantly, these plans foreshadow the rise of over 30 million “Purple-Collar” talents, who are human-dominant collaborators partnered with AI systems to blend unique human judgment with machine precision.
From Arts for Good’s perspective, talent development must urgently adapt to this massive wave of AI application heading our way. Along with AI literacy and skills, we must strengthen and prioritize the crucial human-hearted aspects of intelligence in ways that have never had to before. We must bring to the fore qualities like intuition, empathy, historical and cultural wisdom and spirit, along with our high standards of ethics, diverse lived experiences, and our unique aesthetic appreciation of the world. All these qualities set humanity apart from the machines, and prove that AI, for all its speed and scale in processing patterns and data, is simply unable to replicate, nor replace us.
We firmly believe that future talents must be driven to create new meaning and purpose, build genuine trust with integrity, and work collaboratively to make the world a better place. They will channel AI’s growing capabilities rather than competing against them or worrying about being replaced.
On a personal note, I am delighted to continue my second year as an industry supervisor in the Creative Communication Programme at the University of Hong Kong. I look forward to mentoring and learning from a fresh cohort of four teams as they explore fresh dimensions and discover a greater meaning of happiness through their passion-driven projects.
Kind Regards,
Change Maker
Arts & Sustainability
Arts & DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging)
Arts & Talent Development
