SINGAPORE: Shopee’s parent company Sea Limited is setting its sights on a US$1 trillion (S$1.30 trillion) market capitalisation, with founder and CEO Forrest Li betting on artificial intelligence to drive the company’s growth, though he admitted it “won’t be easy” to harness the full potential of the technology.
The parent company of Southeast Asia and Taiwan’s leading e-commerce platform is also betting on new initiatives in digital finance and logistics to strengthen its position and boost investor confidence in its growth potential.
According to Bloomberg News, Mr Li told employees in a memo on the eighth anniversary of Sea’s stock-market debut that AI could drive the next wave of growth, similar to how personal computers and smartphones expanded consumer access to products and services, which were once only available to the wealthy.
Mr Li added, “It will require us to make the right calls, execute extremely well, remain very disciplined, and compete relentlessly,” adding that a tech transition like this makes it possible for Sea to be a trillion-dollar company.
Last year, the Sea founder warned of a difficult transition to AI but has since integrated it into the company’s operations, including customer service and gaming.
Mr Li also mentioned the company’s rising share price, saying it might fall quickly if market conditions change, but added that Sea’s financial position has improved since it crashed at the end of 2021 and doesn’t need to rely on external capital for growth.
He wrote, “While the external environment will always be unpredictable, I feel much more settled today about our future…Even if the seas turn choppy again, we are in much greater control of our own decisions and our own destiny.”
Sea’s current rivals include ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok Shop and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s Lazada, as well as emerging players Shein and PDD Holdings Inc.’s Temu. /TISG
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