[Air-L] Call for Papers: AI Regulation in Asia – Emerging Pathways, Divergent Models, and Global Implications (Special Issue with Computer Law & Security Review)

Mon Jan 26 04:14:28 PST 2026

Dear Colleagues,

I’m forwarding a Call for Papers for a Special Issue with Computer Law & Security Review on the topic of AI Regulation in Asia. If you’re toying with an idea and would like to sanity-check it or simply sound something out, please feel free to drop me a line — I’m always happy to chat things through at an early stage. And if you think this might be of interest to colleagues, students, or collaborators in your own networks, I’d be very grateful if you could help spread the word.

With best wishes,

Wenlong

AI Regulation in Asia – Emerging Pathways, Divergent Models, and Global Implications

Submission deadline: 15 September 2026

As artificial intelligence becomes a core infrastructure of global economic and social life, the centre of gravity in its governance is shifting. While the European Union has captured much attention with its regulatory experiments AI Act, the future of AI’s normative order will not be determined in Brussels alone. It will hinge increasingly on the diverse and rapidly evolving regulatory landscapes including Asia—the world’s fastest-growing digital market, technological laboratory, and policy innovator. From Tokyo to Seoul, Beijing to Singapore, Asian jurisdictions are testing alternative governance philosophies that balance innovation, security, ethics, and sovereignty in ways that challenge the foundations of Western (mostly European) regulatory models. Understanding AI regulation in Asia, therefore, is not a regional exercise but a global necessity: it offers insights into how multiple centres of regulatory gravity can coexist, compete, and possibly converge to shape the next phase of international AI governance.

The global regulatory landscape for artificial intelligence (AI) is undergoing unprecedented transformation, marked by the EU AI Act’s pioneering and comprehensive legislative framework. This landmark regulation has set a benchmark for AI governance worldwide, prompting many jurisdictions to consider similar approaches. However, a growing body of critical scholarship warns against overstating the so-called “Brussels Effect” in this domain. While the EU’s data protection regime demonstrated powerful extraterritorial influence, the same diffusion cannot be assumed for AI. The architecture of AI development—fragmented, modular, and service-based—allows companies to localise compliance and maintain divergent operational standards across markets. Moreover, competing regulatory poles, including the United States’ emerging state-level initiatives and China’s security-driven model of AI governance, dilute the gravitational pull of Brussels. Critics thus argue that the Brussels Effect in AI is likely to be selective rather than systemic, exerting influence mainly in highly regulated or certification-dependent sectors such as healthcare, finance, and mobility, where EU market access remains indispensable. At the same time, the rise of alternative regulatory centres—the United States with its pluralistic, innovation-led frameworks, and China with its technology-specific governance measures and emergent AI model laws—introduces countervailing pressures that further fragment the global compliance landscape.

Within this broader transformation, Asia represents a crucial yet underexamined frontier. The region’s complex mosaic of legal systems, socio-economic contexts, and technological ecosystems has given rise to multiple and sometimes divergent regulatory trajectories. Whilesome countries seek alignment with or adaptation of EU-style rules, others are charting distinct paths tailored to their unique cultural, political, and developmental realities. The Asia Group Report (2024) highlights this heterogeneity: large and technologically advanced economies such as India, Japan, Singapore, and South Korea pursue pro-innovation, rulemaking strategies designed to foster AI development while simultaneously shaping regional standards. China adopts a cautious yet assertive approach characterised by strong state direction, swift regulatory promulgation, and a balance between innovation and security imperatives. Many smaller and emerging economies/jurisdictions—including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines—tend toward rule-taking strategies, adopting or adapting regulatory frameworks from neighbouring countries or global standards, often under conditions of lower policy autonomy. Regional cooperation efforts, such as the ASEAN Guide on AI Governance and Ethics, mark important beginnings but stop short of establishing binding norms. Together, these initiatives reveal a region alive with experimentation—a “bubbling hot pot” of diverse governance models that complicates cross-border compliance yet stimulates dialogue on shared ethical and policy concerns.

Amidst the mounting pressures of AI Act implementation in Europe and the global search for workable governance models, it is increasingly clear that a one-size-fits-all regulatory approach is neither feasible nor desirable. Asian jurisdictions are simultaneously engaging with global frameworks and inventing novel mechanisms that reflect regional priorities and institutional realities. This dynamic evolution calls for critical reflection and systematic stocktaking of Asia’s emerging role in shaping the future architecture of global AI governance.

This Special Issue provides a site for critical and constructive debate on the evolving governance of AI across Asia. It seeks to capture the richness and diversity of Asian experiences, exploring how legal, policy, ethical, and technical dimensions of AI oversight interact within and beyond national borders. Submissions are invited that illuminate regional particularities, identify challenges and opportunities, and situate Asian developments within global conversations on AI regulation. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

●AI regulation at Asian levels

●AI industrial policies and their interplay with regulatory frameworks

●Regulatory harmonisation efforts and regional cooperation

●The interplay between data protection and AI regulation in Asia

●Country-specific analyses with broader policy or governance implications

●The institutional aspects of AI governance

●Emergent compliance mechanisms and best practices

●The enforcement of data protection laws in the realm of AI

●Sector-specific AI governance (e.g., healthcare, finance, education, public administration)

●The scope and limits of the Brussels Effect in Asia with reference to AI regulation

●We particularly welcome interdisciplinary research that combines legal analysis with empirical studies, comparative perspectives, or insights into national and supranational regulatory developments. Methodologically diverse approaches—doctrinal, empirical (quantitative or qualitative), comparative, or theoretical—are encouraged, as long as they contribute to a deeper understanding of regulatory design and implementation in Asian contexts. Case studies of national experiences (with broader implications), crossjurisdictional convergence, or the influence of supranational frameworks are also welcome.

Manuscript submission information:

Full-length research articles (10,000–15,000 words, including footnotes and references) should be written in clear academic English and follow the journal’s house style. Submitted papers must be original and not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Each submission must include an abstract of no more than 250 words and up to seven keywords, demonstrating an explicit consideration of AI-specific regulation or policymaking to ensure their relevance to the journal’s core readership.

Please refer to Elsevier's the Guide for Authors for submission guidelines. Extended versions of previously published conference papers are acceptable, provided the manuscript includes substantial new content and differs from the earlier version. Manuscript can be submitted through the journal’s editorial submission system (registration required): Editorial Manager®. Select VSI:AI Regulation in Asia (in the Dropdown menu "Select Article Type").

All manuscripts submitted to this Special Issue will undergo a standard double-blind peer review process in accordance with the journal’s editorial policy. Each paper will be reviewed by at least two anonymous experts, and editorial decisions will be based on their assessments and the recommendations of the guest editors.

Important dates

Manuscript submission open date: 9th January 2026

Manuscript submission deadline: 15 September 2026

Dr Wenlong Li (He/him)

Research Professor

Guanghua School of Law

Zhejiang University

109, Building 1, 51 Zhijiang Road, Xihu District, Hangzhou, China, 310008

Recent Publication:

Wenlong Li et al., 'Mapping the empirical literature of the GDPR's (In-)effectiveness: A systematic review' (2025) 57 Computer Law & Security Review 106129 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212473X25000021

K Yeung & Wenlong Li, 'From ‘wild west’ to ‘responsible’ AI testing ‘in-the-wild’: lessons from live facial recognition testing by law enforcement authorities in Europe' (2025) 7 Data & Policy e59 https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/data-and-policy/article/from-wild-west-to-responsible-ai-testing-inthewild-lessons-from-live-facial-recognition-testing-by-law-enforcement-authorities-in-europe/3C1F920D9588C8872C195CE403AE3BDF 

Wenlong Li, 'How the Legal Basis for AI Training is Framed in Data Protection Guidelines and Interventions: Comparative Perspectives and the Prospect of Global Convergence (2025 forthcoming) International Data Privacy Law https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5162653

Wenlong Li, 'Accountability and Attribution in AI-Generated Content Authentication: Lessons from China’s AI Content Labelling Mandate' (2025) 1 Paris Journal on AI & Digital Ethics 105-120 https://paris-conference.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/PJAIDE_2025_11_08.pdf