Bangkok: Alphabet’s Google announced on Monday ( Sep 30 ) that it would invest US$ 1 billion to construct a data center and cloud region in Thailand to meet growing demand for artificial intelligence and encourage adoption of artificial intelligence in Southeast Asia.
Google’s growth in Thailand may add US$ 4 billion to the village’s gross domestic product by 2029 and support an average of 14, 000 employment every between 2025 and 2029, the firm said, citing a statement from firm Deloitte.
” Google’s sky and data center infrastructure in Bangkok and Chonburi will help satisfy growing demand for Google Cloud capabilities and AI innovations, and the company’s common online services- quite as Search, Maps, and Google Workspace”, the company said.
The Google sky area, which consists of hardware and software and is intended to serve both private and public sector companies, would be in the money itself, while the Google sky location, which would be located in Chonburi,  , a major industrial neighborhood southeast of Bangkok.
” These investments will empower Thai businesses, innovators and communities to harness the power of cloud and AI technology”, Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer of Google and its parent company Alphabet, said.
After a meeting in Bangkok between Porat and Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who praised the move as proof that Thailand was becoming a significant digital hub in Southeast Asia, the investment’s details were revealed.
Shinawatra said Google’s investment was “perfectly aligned” with the country’s Cloud First Policy.
The announcement comes a year after Srettha Thavisin, Shinawatra’s predecessor, made a significant push for investment from US tech companies while visiting New York to look for funding from Tesla, Google, and Microsoft.
Thailand is Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, but its tech sector has lagged behind the likes of Singapore and Indonesia.
The Thai economy, long focused on traditional manufacturing, agriculture and tourism, has struggled to bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Microsoft announced in May that it would establish Thailand’s first data center region to boost the development of artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure with Google’s investment.
The government hopes investment from Google, Microsoft and their ilk will diversify and modernise the kingdom’s economy.
According to the Office of the National Digital Economy and Society Commission in Thailand, the digital economy could make up 30 % of GDP by 2027.
Governments from across the region are competing for US tech dollars, with Vietnam attempting to move its production center from its traditional base of clothing, clothing, and furniture up the value chain.
Vietnam hopes to capitalize on the US’s decision to cut back on important resources, such as high-tech chips, that China rely on to supply its needs.
And last week, Vietnamese state media reported that Musk’s SpaceX plans to invest US$ 1.5 billion in the communist country.