TikTok, a short video social platform under Douyin Group, announced that it will invest more than 300 billion Thai Baht (approximately 8.8 billion US dollars) in Thailand over the next five years to strengthen technological infrastructure and promote Thailand as the digital hub of the ASEAN region.
In recent years, investments by several leading global technology companies reflect the importance of Thailand in the digital economy and its status as a hub in Southeast Asia.
Helena Lersch, Vice President of Public Policy at TikTok, led the executive team to meet with Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha at the Government House to discuss investment plans and strategic cooperation.
TikTok plans to enhance data management efficiency for users in Thailand and the ASEAN region through key projects such as Data Hosting, improve cybersecurity, and create business opportunities for digital economy enterprises. Prayut welcomed this and emphasized that the Thai government's policies are committed to driving Thailand towards a strong digital era, opening up cooperation with the private sector to further develop a sustainable digital economy.
Helena stated that TikTok fully supports the global reach of Thailand's soft power, such as promoting local specialty products like "One Tambon One Product" (OTOP) through TikTok Shop, spreading Thai culture through creative content, and encouraging Thai content creators to expand into global markets. Additionally, to enhance digital media literacy, TikTok will collaborate with the Thai government to combat fake news and online fraud, and organize various activities to help the public improve their cybersecurity awareness.
This investment not only showcases the potential of Thailand as a regional digital hub but also provides significant momentum for Thailand's digital economy. Prayut praised TikTok for helping the Thai tourism industry spread quickly and widely through the platform and word of mouth, where the "#Thailand" tag has been used over 4 million times, and the global craze for the "Bouncing Pig" has swept the world.
Prayut stated that the Thai government is willing to work with TikTok and the private sector to build a strong, sustainable digital future, allowing the Thai people to take bigger and further steps on the global stage.
In 2024, tech giants such as Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Nvidia have already invested in Thailand, and in 2025, TikTok will follow suit. Microsoft focuses on artificial intelligence and cloud computing and promises to train one hundred thousand talents; AWS invests over 5 billion US dollars in building cloud computing infrastructure; Google invests 1 billion US dollars in building a data center; Nvidia, although not disclosing the specific investment amount, is estimated to be around 200 million US dollars.
