Singtel partners with Nvidia to advance AI data centre push in ASEAN

Singtel announced that it will work with Nvidia to deliver artificial intelligence capabilities in its data centres across Southeast Asia as the Singaporean telecommunications giant scales its regional data centre business.

Singtel will offer access to Nvidia’s graphics processing units (GPUs) through its regional data centres. The first AI services will spin up in Singapore, with future data centres under construction in Indonesia and Thailand to follow.

In a statement, Nvidia said the datacentres will be sovereign “AI factories” that will process private datasets of companies, startups, universities and governments. Customers will be able to leverage Singtel’s fixed broadband network, submarine cables and 5G network connectivity to operate their AI workloads in a multi-network and multi-cloud environment.

The partnership between the pair signals Singtel’s further support for Singapore’s National AI Strategy 2.0, which calls to use AI to drive innovation.

Singtel launches Nxera

The announcement was part of Singtel’s launch of its new regional data centre brand called Nxera.

“The launch of the Nxera data centre brand is a key milestone for our data centre business as we look to expand our footprint in the region beyond 200MW over the next three years,” according to Bill Chang, CEO of Nxera and Singtel’s Digital InfraCo unit.

The telecom has also partnered with companies including Thailand’s Gulf Energy Development, Indonesia’s Medco Power, and Malaysia’s TNB Renewables to tap into their renewable energy, as it targets to reach operational net-zero emissions by 2028.

In a further bid to go green, the company will work with Singapore’s Deston and SGP Global, as well as Quanta Cloud Technology, Shell, Stulz and Supermicro to establish a co-innovation platform to develop and test liquid and immersion cooling and water-saving technologies.

“Digitalisation shouldn’t come at the expense of our decarbonisation efforts,” Chang said.

Singtel added it will create a regional sustainable data centre academy with the Singapore Institute of Technology, Nanyang Polytechnic, and Singapore Polytechnic. To be launched in mid-2024, the academy is expected to train more than 150 students annually.

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