Google committed to making US$2bil in investments in Malaysia, including its first data centre and Google Cloud effort in the region.

The pledge marks Google’s largest planned investment in the South-East Asian nation, according to Alphabet Inc chief financial officer Ruth Porat in a statement.

US tech giants have stepped up their investments in South-East Asia in recent months, committing billions of dollars in investments as they seek new growth opportunities. The CEOs of Microsoft Corp, Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp have all travelled through the region to sketch out strategic plans and meet with heads of state.

Microsoft’s chief executive officer Satya Nadella said this month the company would invest US$2.2bil in Malaysia, in addition to similar pledges for Indonesia and Thailand. Microsoft and Google are competing fiercely for leadership in artificial-intelligence services, seeking customers to adopt their offerings in the burgeoning field.

Google said that, in addition to the development of cloud computing services, it would support AI literacy programs for students and educators.

 - Bloomberg