HOW long can traditional financial services providers withstand the onslaught of AI-enabled disrupters? That's a key question for banks, insurers and asset managers in Asia-Pacific as a wave of disrupters challenge the status quo with new ways of doing business.

Clearly, China is at the forefront of this trend. The Greater Bay area - which includes the Pearl Delta, Hong Kong and Macau - is host to one third of China's AI companies. It's a hotbed of innovation in 5G, the Internet of Things and computer learning.

As much as any other industry, established financial services players are feeling the heat of these new technologies. Already, the likes of Alibaba and Tencent are making inroads into asset management. In its Yuebao partnership, for instance, Alibaba operates the world's largest money market fund with some US$144 billion in assets under management (AUM). Tencent, meanwhile, has launched its own open architecture advisory platform, helping retail clients choose their investments.