The AirAsia Foundation, as AirAsia Group's philanthropic wing, plays a crucial role in fostering social entrepreneurship across ASEAN. It offers social enterprise awards to help aspiring entrepreneurs scale up their ventures, providing them with essential seed funding and mentorship. This support extends through the grant period, leveraging AirAsia's network strengths to facilitate vital connections. The Foundation's Council of Trustees comprises ASEAN citizens with diverse professional backgrounds, from entrepreneurs to lawyers, who contribute their expertise and local knowledge to guide both the Foundation's team and grantees​​​​.

Reflecting AirAsia's start-up roots, the Foundation has expanded across seven ASEAN countries, supporting a variety of social enterprises. These enterprises address various social goals, including environmental conservation and poverty alleviation. The Foundation assists these entrepreneurs in raising their profiles, rebranding their products, and accessing new markets. It also invests in community-based tourism initiatives and the development of ethical brands, aligning these efforts with AirAsia's core business values of sustainability, fairness, and inclusivity​.