Writer: Jordan Sprogis
Editor: Lillian Castro
Reviewer: Cristian Lopez
Key Takeaways
- Amazon, Microsoft, and Google have collectively committed more than $20 billion in the Asia-Pacific region, with new cloud locations in Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
- Hosting providers can use this opportunity to follow suit and deploy internationally using the same hyperscale infrastructure already trusted by APAC businesses and consumers.
Three of the world’s largest cloud providers — AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud — are actively investing more than $20 billion into the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region with new data centers in Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand.
With the APAC region growing at a 22.9% CAGR, hosts that depend on hyperscale infrastructure can now deploy to the fastest-growing market effortlessly without any new hardware or lease agreements required.
APAC Demand Is Surging
Cloud infrastructure spending has experienced “very positive results across all regions,” according to a 2024 IDC report, with shared cloud growth hitting 148.3% in the U.S., 100% in China, and 90.3% across the rest of APAC (excluding Japan and China).
Southeast Asia, in particular, has become a growth launchpad, with dozens of new startups and acquisitions coming out of Singapore and Taiwan.
Taiwanese giants, including TSMC, Cathay Financial, and Chunghwa Telecom, are already deploying the new AWS region in Taipei.
Call it a hyperscale arms race because everybody wants a piece of the APAC pie. Here are the exact numbers broken down:
- AWS: $5B in Taipei, Taiwan, and $9B committed to Singapore through 2028
- Microsoft: $2.2B in Malaysia, $1.7B in Indonesia, and a new data region in Thailand
- Google: $1B in Thailand and $2B in Malaysia
Web hosts that use AWS/Azure/GCP (especially in the U.S. which may have lower adoption rates due to higher latency) are using the same tech stack that the fast-growing startups are already relying on.
Without it, the numbers leave little to be desired.
According to WonderNetwork, a user in Jakarta pinging a server in Singapore may see about 12ms latency speeds. The same user pinging a U.S.-based server in Washington, D.C., could experience more than 220ms.
That’s a massive difference that directly impacts SEO, conversions, and app experience. All international providers have to do is get in their backyard.
Ride the Backs of Hyperscalers
Despite rapid growth across APAC and Southeast Asia, cost remains a pain point for small businesses and startups.
A market researcher found that hosting providers that offer long-term discounts (like multi-month or annual commitments) tend to win more customers in Southeast Asia.
U.S. or European providers should capitalize on this finding by offering regionally tuned offerings, such as:
- “Taiwan-hosted” for compliance-sensitive sectors or local businesses that prefer to keep it regional
- “APAC-optimized” for eCommerce and SaaS providers, where latency makes or breaks a conversion
- “Deployed on global cloud infrastructure” for enterprise companies that need to reach millions a day
- “Simple, transparent billing” for small businesses that want predictable costs
Combined with regional-driven offerings and hyperscale infrastructure, it’s only going to lure in those businesses that prioritize performance, trust, and compliance.
The numbers seem to only further support the notion that these markets will continue to mature.
Between 2017 and 2023, internet access in APAC grew by 22%, bringing millions of new businesses and customers online. Africa saw a similar momentum, with rates rising by about 16% between 2017 and 2023.
As these previously underserved markets continue to grow, the need for trusted hosting infrastructure will, without a doubt, follow suit.
