ChatGPT's parent company, OpenAI, is planning to expand by opening an office in Singapore later this year and has started building a team in the country.
OpenAI said Singapore will be a hub where it will support customers and partners throughout the Asia Pacific region, and the team here will help to strengthen relationships with local and regional governments, businesses, and institutions. In its announcement at Tech Week Singapore, OpenAI said its plans reflect Singapore’s ‘leadership position’ in technology and artificial intelligence (AI), as well as the growing demand for advanced AI tools across the Asia Pacific region.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Singapore “has emerged as a leader in artificial intelligence”.
Altman added that the company is excited to partner with the government and the country’s “thriving AI ecosystem” as it expands into the region.
OpenAI’s local presence will also allow it to work more closely with government partners such as the Economic Development Board (EDB), it said. It will support Singapore’s local AI ecosystem and help shape an AI-powered future that ‘benefits everyone’.
EDB Managing Director Jacqueline Poh said OpenAI’s decision to establish a presence in Singapore underscores the strength of the country’s growing AI ecosystem.
To spearhead OpenAI’s regional efforts in Singapore and across the region, the company has appointed Oliver Jay as Managing Director for International. He will be based in Singapore and oversee OpenAI’s international operations and global expansion. OpenAI’s first Developer Day will also be held in Singapore in November this year, bringing ‘together the region’s flourishing community of developers and startups who are building the future of AI’.