[SINGAPORE] Alibaba’s cloud computing arm on Wednesday (Jul 2) launched a global artificial intelligence (AI) innovation hub in Singapore, which will support over 5,000 businesses and 100,000 developers globally.
Alibaba Cloud’s virtual innovation hub, named AI Global Competency Centre (AIGCC) was unveiled at Alibaba Cloud’s global summit held at Shangri-La Hotel.
The fully-online facility will be where more than 1,000 companies and startups can meet to co-develop next-generation AI solutions, said Alibaba Cloud.
The launch comes as the Chinese tech giant completes a decade of operations in Singapore, which has been the company’s international headquarters from the start.
Responding to queries from The Business Times, Alibaba Cloud said that Singapore’s strong digital infrastructure, pro-innovation policies and deep talent pool make it the “natural choice to lead the next phase of AI growth in the region”.
The innovation hub will provide companies access to advanced AI models and powerful computing resources to accelerate experimentation and deployment. Its AI Innovation Lab will offer token credits, curated datasets and personalised support tailored to real-world scenarios and industry needs.
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Businesses and developers interested in taking part in AIGCC will need to apply through Alibaba Cloud’s designated channels. Those seeking access to the lab will need to show a relevant use case or project.
The company said: “Organisations and startups involved in developing next-generation AI solutions across industries such as finance, healthcare, logistics, manufacturing, retail and energy will be particularly encouraged to participate.”
Alibaba Cloud also announced its partnership with more than 120 universities and institutions globally the same day. It targets to train 100,000 AI professionals a year.
Already, it has been working with local universities, including Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), to nurture the “next generation of tech talent in the country”.
NTU and Alibaba launched the Alibaba-NTU Global e-Sustainability CorpLab in 2024 to advance smart technologies for a greener society. Over the next five years, up to 200 scientists and engineers from the two sides will team up for global research in areas such as energy-efficient AI and green cloud computing.
In 2024, SUSS and Alibaba Cloud worked together to launch the Alibaba Cloud Prize Competition to encourage innovation in integrated care using cloud computing and AI.
Beyond Singapore, Alibaba Cloud on Wednesday also announced the opening of two data centres in South-east Asia.
A new centre opened in Malaysia on Tuesday (Jul 1), the group’s third such facility in the country. Alibaba Cloud is also slated to open a second data centre in the Philippines in October.
In the first half of 2025, Alibaba Cloud announced infrastructure investments in Thailand, Mexico and South Korea.
“This growing network ensures that Alibaba Cloud can meet the rising global demand for secure, resilient and scalable cloud services.”
Earlier this year, Alibaba Group said it would set aside at least 380 billion yuan (S$67.5 billion) over the next three years to advance its cloud computing and AI infrastructure. The development of data centres is part of the investment plan, said Alibaba Cloud.
