The first visit to Thailand in 8 years by Satya Nadella, CEO of global technology major Microsoft at the Microsoft Build: AI Day event held on May 1, 2024 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center comes with the announcement of the establishment of the “Azure Region”. Or the first integrated data center in Thailand. This comes after the signing of a cooperation agreement between Microsoft and the Thai government at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Meeting in San Francisco, United States, in mid-November 2023.
Mr. Satya said Thailand has great potential and opportunities for creativity, a future driven by digital innovation and artificial intelligence, and the opening of a new regional data center along with investing in other infrastructure and building artificial intelligence skills, these are plans that enhance Microsoft’s mission. To help Thai organizations both in the public sector and private sector grow and create new changes for Thailand
According to research by consulting firm Kearney, AI will increase the GDP of Southeast Asian countries by up to US$1 trillion (37 trillion baht) by 2030, of which Thailand's total GDP will rise to US$117 billion (4.3 trillion baht). .
Fireworks in the regional center “Thailand”.
Mr. Sita Thaweesin The Prime Minister said that artificial intelligence is one of the most powerful changes of this decade. Including changing lifestyles, workplaces and working methods Thailand is ready to support the growth of the AI industry because it is one of the countries with a strong digital infrastructure. Whether it is broadband internet, mobile network, 5G infrastructure and international submarine cable network
“Since taking office, several important policies have been implemented. Both in the short and long term to enhance competitiveness and raise Thailand's position in the world. The government is leading the National AI Action Plan, Phase 2 for 2024-2027, to leverage the country's AI and cloud computing power.” To implement a project to enhance the AI ecosystem in Thailand”
The “IGNITE TAILAND” vision announced in February 2024 reflects the government’s commitment to transform Thailand into a regional hub in 8 key industries. Including the digital economy travels health, medicine, food, aviation, transportation, future vehicles and finance, which includes bringing investment money into the country's technology industry. To maintain a secure digital ecosystem and manage infrastructure
“This announcement of cooperation with Microsoft is an important step for us on the path towards the IGNITE THAILAND vision, which aims to create opportunities for all Thai people to grow. Create innovation and have a better quality of life.”
Unleashing the potential of the public and private sectors
Dr. Cheshana Mitrevan The director of the Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA) revealed to Prachachat Turakij that Microsoft's investment in data centers helped to remove many restrictions, especially in the operations of government agencies. Because there is a data center in Thailand this will result in only information that occurred in Thailand remaining in Thailand. It is not lost to a data center in another country and this is beyond our ability to supervise and control the extent of data use.
“Some government activities or meetings must be confidential. There are regulations that control the need to keep data only within the country. This makes it impossible to store that information via the cloud. Because the data is sent to data centers in other countries. As a result, work in every Stepping into a digital system is difficult.
Dr. Cheshana continued that data centers will help other non-digital industrial sectors to benefit from growth and provide opportunities to develop new innovations, especially the energy group directly linked to data centers. It is also an opportunity to bring new knowledge to the country, such as data center security, etc.
“There are still many opportunities from data centers. Because the demand for data is growing every day. It is the infrastructure that allows more things to be expanded, which should be done in parallel. It is to foster a strong data center ecosystem, such as pay-for-use on Broad scope, increased data management skills, etc.”
Create a new career
Mr. Phachara Arayakarnkul The CEO of Bluebik Group Public Company Limited, a digital transformation consulting firm, revealed to Prachachat Turakij that establishing a data center in Thailand will help reduce the problem of Data Residency. When there are various political controversies affecting data security, it helps Many organizations are gaining more confidence in using the cloud. It is also an opportunity to expand the business.
“Organizations in Thailand are still concerned about using the cloud. There is a very small percentage of organizations that use the cloud 100%, and most of them still store data in-house or set up their own servers. Which has limitations in scaling and managing the growing data trend.”
Mr. Bashara added that establishing a data center in the country also reduces latency problems because the distance of data reception and transmission is shorter. It makes it take less time too. Where it used to take 100 milliseconds each round to send data back and forth, for a total of 200 milliseconds, it may now only take 50 milliseconds per round, for a total of 100 milliseconds. This difference affects real-time orders. The more memory, the lower the system access time. There will be further development of technology that has the opportunity to expand into new businesses, such as robotics. It requires fast data transfer, etc.
“In addition to increasing business opportunities, the establishment of data centers in Thailand also helps increase digital employment. Especially the system administrator position. Or the person who looks after the back-end system. We see this as an opportunity for Thai talent that already has the ability.
Reflects confidence in Thailand
Miss Pattama Chantarak The head of Accenture Thailand, a technology and business consulting firm, told Prachat Turakij that having a data center in Thailand will help boost the country's digital infrastructure. Ready to be a digital hub in Southeast Asia Thailand already has an advantage in the use of technology. Financial services in particular have been rapidly adopting new technologies since the blockchain era.
“Microsoft's decision reflects great confidence in investing in Thailand. The company already owns a data center in a country close to Thailand. There is no need to make additional investments. Because it may not be worth the investment. But he chose to come to Thailand because of three things he saw: 1. There were Opportunities and potential for growth 2. There is good support from the Thai government and 3. The trend of digital competition in Thailand is clear.
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