🏗️💽 Top 3 Data Centre Market Globally - Guess Which SEA Country

GM. this is micro digest, we're the Neil Degrasse Tyson of SEA tech news.

We're so good that we even managed to convince flat earth-ers that the earth is not flat.

Here's what we got for you:

• 🌊 The SEA - Singapore remains the top data centre market in Asia Pacific

• ⛵ SEAppets 

• 💰 SEA Deals  

• 🖼️ AI Image of the day

• 🐣 Tweet of the day

Markets 📈

You would think Singapore with less developable land, wouldn't be on any list of the top data centre markets.

Well boy, you would be so wrong.

Not only are Singapore the top 1 data centre market in Asia Pacific but they are also ranked third in the world.

You see, even I thought that Malaysia would be on top of the list because of our cheap labour and relatively large plot of land but it turns out I was wrong. (Malaysia, you never cease to disappoint)

🏗️ The Data Centre Market

• According to the 2023 Global Data Centre Market Comparison report by Cushman and Wakefield, the data centre market continued its rapid growth, with an estimated 7.4 GW online as compared to 4.9 GW last year

• The move towards secondary and emerging data centre markets has been substantial with hyper-scale tenants and collocation providers evaluating and announcing new projects worldwide

• Utility costs rose by a median of 16%

🌍 Top Ten Data Centre Market in The World

1. Portland*

2. North Virginia*

3. Singapore

4. Hong Kong

5. Silicon Valley*

6. Atlanta*

7. Chicago*

8. Dallas

9. Phoenix

10. Seatle

*Ranking tie

• Funny that Singapore and Hong Kong with little developable land are the only two cities outside of the US that are ranked in the top 10 data centre markets

• Well this is because of their strong ecosystems, excellent connectivity and consistent demand for all major cloud services that continue to expand in these cities

🦁 Top Ten Data Centre Market in APAC

1. Singapore

2. Hong Kong

3. Sydney*

4. Seoul*

5. Tokyo

6. Beijing

7. Mumbai

8. Shanghai

9. Melbourne

10. Kuala Lumpur

*Ranking tie

As the data centre market continues to grow, there will be a lot of interest in emerging markets. At the end of the day, it goes down to which government has the friendlier policies to suit operators and make it easier for them to invest and do business. So far Singapore is doing just that, especially after the government lifted its moratorium and established new policies and parameters, reopening the market to savvy developers who can satisfy the government’s new requirements.

SEAppets ⛵

1. Alternative lending was the fastest-growing fintech sector in Southeast Asia and India in the past two decades. What is alternative lending? P2P lending. According to a report by Robocash group, the number of alternative lenders grew from eight in 2000 to 544 last year.

2. Geolah, a Singapore-based mobility-as-a-service company wants to remove commission fees altogether. Right now the company is gearing up to offer services similar to Grab like ride-hailing, food delivery and parcel delivery. It wants to become a super app but instead of charging drivers commission fees, the startup will get its revenue through rebates from digital payments, insurance and automotive firms. It will also sell ads with the company already onboarded Shell and Klook.

3. AirAsia said bye-bye to its first chatbot AVA and welcomed 'Ask Bo' which has enhanced AI and machine learning capabilities. AVA, since it went live for the first time in January 2019, has handled more than 113 million guests, with over 43 million queries at the peak of Covid alone. Named after the CEO of AirAsia Aviation Group, Ask Bo will be able to provide live updates on flight status and is also promising guests more autonomy to change flights and request refunds.

Well, let's just wait and see. Is it going to be better or is it just a mere rebrand?

SEA Deals 💰

1. Headquartered in Singapore, fintech startup Tazapay has secured USD $16.9 million in a Series A funding round led by Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia. This ex-Grab and Strip execs' fintech startup is a platform for cross-border commerce focusing on small and medium-sized enterprises. It conducts background checks on potential business partners for SMEs and sets up a digital escrow to protect their payments. The investment will be used to scale its business across Asia and expand into other key regions such as the Middle East and Europe.

2. Singapore-based myFirst has raised USD $2.2 million in an oversubscribed seed round joined by tech founders and executives from a few companies like PatSnap, Google and TNB Aura. The kid-focused wearable tech company aims to raise USD $5 million for its Series A round.

We've covered the launch of their kid-friendly social media launch at CES 2023. Read more about it here.

3. Another Singapore-based startup, SwipeRx has raised USD $10 million in a Series B extension round joined by Global pharma company Sanofi’s Global Health Unit and Cercano Management (which was launched by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen). SwipeRx provides digital tools and information pharmacists need to serve their patients better and manage their pharmacies. The company plans to use the proceeds to expand its B2B commerce platform for the pharmaceutical industry in key markets.

4. Wait I'm not done yet, we got another Singaporean startup that raised money. That's right, they're killing it. Ampotech, a Singapore-based energy technology startup has raised USD $1.3 million in a Pre-Series A funding round led by Earth Venture Capital. The company plans to use the fresh capital to expand to Vietnam and pursue energy management and sustainability opportunities within The Kuok Group’s real estate and marine businesses.

5. The Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) has joined Gobi Partners in co-investing USD $1.16 million in pitchIN. The investments will be spent to assist Pitch Platforms to expand its equity crowdfunding (ECF) platform and launch its first initial exchange offering (IEO) in Malaysia. They will also be introducing a secondary market platform and expanding their operations regionally.

AI image of the day 🖼️

Homeless Muppets

Tweet of the day 🐣

Nobody gives a sh*t about you as much as you do

That's a wrap for today. See you all tomorrow! 👋