OpenAI is making a major push into the Asia Pacific region with plans to open its first office in Singapore. Announced on October 9, this move highlights the company’s intent to strengthen partnerships with governments, businesses, and institutions in one of the world’s fastest-growing AI markets.
“Singapore, with its rich history of technology leadership, has emerged as a leader in AI, recognizing its potential to solve some of society’s hardest problems and advance economic prosperity,” said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The new office, expected to open by the end of 2024, will serve as a base for the company’s expansion across Southeast Asia, where demand for AI solutions is rapidly growing.
Jacqueline Poh, managing director of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), welcomed the move, saying, “OpenAI’s presence underscores the strength of [Singapore’s] AI ecosystem, and we expect it to spark further collaborations and attract more leading-edge companies to our region.”
In tandem, OpenAI announced a partnership with AI Singapore, pledging up to USD 1 million to develop resources aimed at ensuring AI models are better adapted to Southeast Asia’s diverse languages and cultures.
This expansion comes at a pivotal moment for OpenAI. Recently, the company raised USD 6.6 billion in fresh funding, bringing its valuation to USD 157 billion—placing it on par with corporate giants like Goldman Sachs and Uber. Led by Thrive Capital, the funding round attracted investments from Microsoft, SoftBank, and Nvidia, among others, cementing OpenAI’s position as a key player in the global AI race.
However, the company continues to navigate significant challenges.
Externally, OpenAI faces fierce competition from tech giants like Google and Meta, as well as AI startups such as Anthropic and xAI. While its services are in high demand, OpenAI is still operating at a loss, with an expected USD 5 billion shortfall this year despite generating USD 3.7 billion in revenue. Developing AI models and scaling its infrastructure remain costly endeavors, but the company is banking on future growth, with revenue projections reaching USD 11.6 billion by 2025.
Internally, OpenAI has experienced notable leadership changes, including the departure of CTO Mira Murati. Nevertheless, the company has maintained its pace of innovation, continuously rolling out new features such as an advanced voice mode, a canvas interface for its GPT-4o model to enhance collaboration in writing and coding, and most recently, the release of its o1 model.
OpenAI has offices in San Francisco, London, Dublin, and Tokyo. Singapore will be among several cities where it is opening new offices, alongside New York, Seattle, Paris, and Brussels. The exact location of its Singapore office is yet to be finalized.