Ms Paetongtarn on Friday (Nov 15) held separate meetings with executives of three major tech companies, Google, TikTok and Microsoft, on the sidelines of the 2024 Apec Economic Leaders’ meeting in Peru, according to Thai government spokesman Jirayu Houngsub.
During the meeting with Karan Bhatia, the global vice-president of government affairs and public policy at Google, Ms Paetongtarn welcomed Google’s plan to develop a data centre and cloud region in Thailand under a US$1billion (B34.8bn) investment, reports the Bangkok Post.
The plan is expected to create over 14,000 jobs from 2025 to 2029 and generate approximately $4bn in economic value by 2029, the spokesman said, quoting the PM.
Ms Paetongtarn also reaffirmed Thailand’s commitment to working closely with Google to improve digital and artificial intelligence skills among the Thai workforce, integrating digital tools to streamline government operations and accelerating the “Go Cloud First” policy.
Mr Jirayu said Mr Bhatia praised the government’s policy to promote digital technologies and said Google is ready to collaborate to train Thai workers.
Based on a memorandum of understanding signed between Google and the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society last year, the two sides will also explore avenues for further cooperation in cybersecurity and online scam prevention, the spokesman said.
The discussion was a follow-up on a previous meeting between Ms Paetongtarn and Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer of Alphabet and Google, during her visit to Thailand on Sept 30.
During the meeting, they discussed the progress of Google’s investment plan and explored further areas for cooperation to promote Thailand’s digital economy and ecosystem.
At a meeting with Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of TikTok, the prime minister hailed TikTok’s close collaboration with various Thai agencies, saying this has benefited Thailand in various areas by empowering small and medium-sized enterprises, boosting digital marketing opportunities through TikTok and other social media platforms, tourism promotion and enhancing digital knowledge and skills.
Both sides also discussed measures to strengthen their partnership, particularly in promoting the digital economy and ecosystem, supporting small businesses, enhancing Thailand’s tourism and creative industries and boosting digital skills and literacy among Thais.
TikTok’s CEO also praised the Thai government’s policy to use a digital economy as one of its major economic growth engines, the government spokesman said.
Both sides also agreed that measures should be devised to ensure safety for social media platform users while content creators should also have social responsibilities, Mr Jirayu said.
As a leading global technology company, TikTok manages multiple platforms that deliver news, education and entertainment content to users. TikTok officially launched in Thailand in 2019, and by 2024, has over 49 million Thai users’ accounts.
Ms Paetongtarn later met with Antony Cook, corporate vice-president and deputy general counsel of Microsoft, as she welcomed the close partnership with Microsoft and expressed readiness to further strengthen collaboration with the company to pursue Thailand’s digital transformation.
They also discussed potential plans for further investments in Cloud and AI infrastructure, as well as initiatives to boost Thai personnel’s AI skills for high-tech industries, which are crucial in creating an economic environment in line with Thailand’s goal of becoming a regional digital hub.
This meeting was a follow-up on Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s visit to Thailand in May 2024, during which he outlined Microsoft’s strategic initiatives in Thailand, Mr Jirayu said.
They include supporting AI skills development for Thais and promoting generative AI tools to increase organisational efficiency and capability.