- Salesforce has announced a $1 billion investment in Singapore over the next five years to enhance AI development and promote the adoption of its Agentforce platform, aiming to bolster the nation's digital workforce and align with Singapore's National AI Strategy 2.0. Additionally, Salesforce is collaborating with Singapore Airlines to develop AI-powered customer service applications.
- Tencent has launched the WeTech Academy in Hong Kong, aiming to provide AI and programming training to tens of thousands of students. The move reflects Tencent's commitment to nurturing technological talent.
- In a recent interview, Sapna Chadha, Google's Vice President for Southeast Asia and South Asia Frontier, emphasized that brands don't need to develop their own AI technologies to benefit from them. She advises companies to first maximize the potential of existing AI tools before seeking additional budgets, invest in prompt engineering expertise and maintain authenticity in their marketing strategies.
- SoftBank plans to transform a former Sharp LCD plant in Osaka into a data center for operating AI agents, in collaboration with OpenAI. The facility, expected to begin operations in 2026, will be one of Japan's largest data centers, aiming to commercialize AI agent models by training them on client data to offer customized AI solutions.
- South Korea has enacted the National Infrastructure Power Grid Expansion Special Act to support industries with high electricity demands, such as AI by facilitating the expansion of the national power grid. The law establishes a national committee to mediate conflicts and aims to overcome challenges like local opposition and high construction costs, ensuring timely electricity supply for strategic industries.
- Japanese tech startup Sakana AI has achieved a significant milestone by developing "AI Scientist-v2", an artificial intelligence system that authored a peer-reviewed scientific paper accepted at the International Conference on Learning Representations.
- At the recent Mobile World Congress 2025 in Barcelona, China Unicom unveiled its "AI Unites All" initiative, aiming to bridge the digital divide by integrating AI across various industries. In collaboration with Huawei, this plan focuses on enhancing computing infrastructure, network connectivity, data resources, model development and application scenarios to promote intelligent transformation and digital inclusion.
- Oracle is in discussions with the Indonesian government to establish a cloud services center on Batam Island, due to its free trade zone status and proximity to Singapore and Malaysia. The move would align with the strategic expansion of its cloud infrastructure across Asia, complementing recent investments like the planned $6.5 billion public cloud region in Malaysia.
- Hong Kong's demand for AI talent is surging, with over 2,000 job openings as the city pushes to become a technology and innovation hub. This growth is driven by increased investment in AI, with sectors like EdTech and finance actively recruiting professionals to accelerate digital transformation.
- The Japan Pavilion at the 2025 Venice Biennale, curated by Jun Aoki, will explore the integration of AI in architectural processes, focusing on the concept of "in-between." The exhibition will investigate scenarios where AI leads architectural development, from conceptualization to spatial optimization, emphasizing the dialogue between human, non-human, natural, and artificial elements.
We hope you found this edition interesting and insightful—look out for our weekly updates with more AI news, research and analysis.
