DIGITIMES Asia news _ Southeast Asia

Monday 12 May 2025

Malaysia eyes climb up the tech ladder as Southeast Asia's semiconductor veteran

Malaysia boasts resilient economic and industrial fundamentals, underpinned by reliable infrastructure, natural resource availability, and an established manufacturing base. In the Southeast Asian semiconductor landscape, it ranks just behind Singapore, home to cutting-edge wafer fabs, but leads the region in large-scale assembly, testing, and packaging operations

Monday 12 May 2025

Thailand attracts Taiwanese investment as trade tensions reshape supply chains

With US President Donald Trump back in the White House, a new wave of tariff and exchange rate issues has impacted global supply chains. However, unlike in the past, businesses are not hastily expanding overseas. Instead, Thailand remains the top choice for companies setting up factories in Southeast Asia, thanks to its strategic location, labor resources, and market potential

Monday 12 May 2025

CATL reportedly seeks US$1 billion loan to boost Indonesia battery plant investment with HK IPO plans ongoing

Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources, reported that Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL), the world's largest battery maker, is seeking a US$1 billion loan to expand its investment in Indonesia. The funds will be used for a battery plant in Karawang, West Java, operated by CATL's joint venture. Sources familiar with the matter said financing negotiations are ongoing, and details may still change

Friday 9 May 2025

Indonesia gains favor with Taiwan EMS firms as labor stability trumps supply chain gaps

With the potential return of "Trump 2.0" and a renewed wave of tariffs, speculation is growing over another shift in global supply chains. Yet for Taiwanese electronics manufacturers, most of whom endured the first Trump-era disruptions, this is no cause for alarm. Global diversification has long been part of their core strategy, not a reactionary measure. Many are instead seizing the moment to evaluate the effectiveness of their global expansion efforts to date

Friday 9 May 2025

Dynamic Electronics: 1Q25 auto slump drags revenue, AI servers and Thailand plant signal rebound

Dynamic Electronics experienced a revenue drop in the first quarter of 2025 due to a slow recovery in the automotive market. Nonetheless, the company anticipates that strong growth in network communications and servers will stabilize or slightly boost revenues in the second quarter

Thursday 8 May 2025

Malaysia's semiconductor strategy advances as AT&S high-volume plant delivers AMD AI chip substrates

Austria's AT&S has begun high-volume manufacturing at its new facility in Kulim Hi-Tech Park, marking a significant milestone in Malaysia's ambition to climb the semiconductor value chain amid shifting global supply networks driven by geopolitical tensions

Thursday 8 May 2025

Can Malaysia make leap from assembly to advanced packaging leader?

Malaysia's semiconductor industry, currently accounting for approximately 7% of global semiconductor exports with annual revenue of around RM575 billion (approx. US$130 billion), stands at a critical juncture as the nation pursues an ambitious strategy to move up the value chain amid shifting global technology supply networks

Thursday 8 May 2025

Pegatron sharpens 5G vision with Batam smart factory

Pegatron Corporation has inaugurated a new factory in Batam, Indonesia, marking a significant milestone as the world's largest 5G smart factory. This facility is notable for being Pegatron's most advanced manufacturing base in Southeast Asia, operating fully on a standalone 5G network architecture

Wednesday 7 May 2025

ASEAN+3 reaffirms commitment to regional financial stability amid global uncertainties

Finance ministers and central bank governors from the ASEAN+3 countries convened in Milan on May 4, 2025, for the 28th ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers' and Central Bank Governors' Meeting (AFMGM+3), co-chaired by Malaysia and China. The high-level dialogue underscored regional economic resilience, despite mounting global challenges, and produced a strong joint statement committing to bolstered financial cooperation, macroeconomic stability, and sustainable growth

Wednesday 7 May 2025

Samsung Vietnam factory hits 900 million smartphone milestone amid tariff headwinds

Samsung Electronics Bac Ninh factory in Vietnam has reached a milestone of producing 900 million smartphones over 17 years since production began in 2009

Wednesday 7 May 2025

Pegatron ramps up 5G O-Ran strategy in SEA to navigate market shifts and expand telecom infrastructure

In response to the initial US-China trade war, Pegatron Corporation began expanding into Indonesia in 2019, setting up operations in Batam. Finding existing capacity inadequate, they increased their investment in 2023 by constructing a new factory, which began operations in 2025 and started mass production earlier this year. This modern facility is now a key site for Pegatron's deployment of 5G Open Radio Access Network (5G O-RAN) business applications

Sunday 4 May 2025

OpenAI's Singapore push cements city-state as Asia-Pacific AI powerhouse

OpenAI is making a decisive push into Asia, with Singapore emerging as a focal point for its regional ambitions. The AI giant is aggressively hiring across a wide range of functions, from engineering and business development to legal, product management, and marketing. The move underscores Singapore's growing clout as a strategic operational hub, positioning the city-state as OpenAI's de facto Asia-Pacific headquarters and a rising force in the global artificial intelligence race

Saturday 3 May 2025

Vingroup enters humanoid robot race with Vietnam's first 'Made-in-Vietnam' model

Vingroup, Vietnam's largest private conglomerate, has announced plans to develop the country's first general-purpose humanoid robot. The initiative is a key pillar of the group's 2025 technology and industrial strategy, which also encompasses its fast-growing electric vehicle (EV) and artificial intelligence (AI) operations

Friday 2 May 2025

LGES bows out of Indonesian EV battery deal—China's Huayou poised to fill the void

LG Energy Solution (LGES) of South Korea has exited its US$8.45 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery project in Indonesia, prompting the Indonesian government to court China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co., Ltd. (Huayou) as a potential replacement investor

Thursday 1 May 2025

Hot and heavy: JS-SEZ bids to lead AI data center innovation in the tropics

Johor and Singapore are emerging as key hubs in Asia Pacific's fast-expanding data center landscape. Johor's data center capacity grew from 10MW in 2021 to over 1,500MW in 2024, with key players such as GDS, Princeton Digital Group, and Equinix setting up there. In recent years, companies headquartered in Singapore have leveraged Johor's proximity to co-locate high-density AI infrastructure. As a result, many data center developments have rapidly shifted to Malaysia's Johor state, which borders Singapore. This shift has propelled data centers to become a key industry within the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), attracting an increasing number of supply chain companies

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BIZ FOCUS

Jun 20, 10:14

2025 AI with purpose global summit debuts in Taipei, gathering over 40 leaders from 10 countries to launch global dialogue on AI and sustainability

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