SINGAPORE: Amazon plans to spend $9 billion to grow its Singapore cloud computing infrastructure.
According to Bloomberg, the investment scheduled for the next four years marks a big step for Amazon Web Services (AWS) as it doubles its regional investment.
The company stated on Tuesday that this expansion aims to meet the escalating demand for cloud services and expedite the integration of artificial intelligence technologies.
AWS is expanding outside the United States, especially in Asia. This trend isn’t unique to Amazon. Tech giants like Microsoft and Apple are also pivoting towards Southeast Asia.
They’re doing this partly to diversify their portfolios and mitigate geopolitical uncertainties, particularly amidst escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington.
This $9 billion plan in Singapore is just part of AWS’s big spending spree this year. They’re putting about $35 billion into projects outside the US, including Japan, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia.
Additionally, they’re building more data centres in Malaysia and Thailand.
Amazon recently said that AWS is close to making more than $100 billion in sales in a year for the first time. The surge in revenue can be attributed to corporate technology modernisation initiatives and the soaring demand for AI-powered services.
The announcement came at the AWS ASEAN Summit in Singapore, where AWS first set up a data centre in Asia. Singapore, serving as a hub for US businesses like Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc., is seen as a “gateway” to the rapidly growing Southeast Asia region.
Microsoft, Amazon’s biggest rival in cloud services, is also focusing on Southeast Asia. Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, just announced new investments and initiatives for Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. /TISG
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