Databricks has opened a new Singapore office at IOI Central Boulevard Towers, a 32,000 square foot space that is four times the size of its previous premises. The move is part of a commitment to invest more than US$350 million in Singapore over the next three years, and it cements the city-state’s position as the company’s hub for Asia Pacific and Japan.
Key Takeaways
- Databricks is investing more than US$350 million in Singapore over three years, anchored by a new 32,000 sq ft office at IOI Central Boulevard Towers.
- The company plans to double its Singapore headcount to over 500 people, including more than 200 forward-deployed engineers.
- The launch also kicked off a three-year Startup AI Accelerator for 100-plus early-stage firms and an AI Social Impact Challenge that drew over 200 student project ideas.
The office was officially opened by guests of honour Low Jin Yong, Senior Vice President and Co-Head of Digital Industry Singapore at the Singapore Economic Development Board, and Chang Sau Sheong, Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Technology Officer at GovTech. They were joined by Databricks leadership, representatives from the Infocomm Media Development Authority, customers, startup founders and student innovators.
More engineers on the ground in Singapore
The new space allows Databricks to double its local team to more than 500 people, including over 200 forward-deployed engineers. That gives the company more people on the ground to help organisations in Singapore move AI projects out of pilot stage and into production.
“This is more than a new address. It’s a statement that the future of data and AI is being built here in Asia Pacific, with Singapore at the centre of it,” said Simon Davies, SVP, Asia Pacific and Japan at Databricks. “Organisations here have moved from experimenting with AI to putting it to work, and this space brings government, enterprises, startups and academia together to make that happen faster.”
The office was also designed to bring customers, government agencies, startups and academic partners into the same building, rather than have Databricks work with each group separately.
A three-year accelerator for 100 startups
As part of the investment, the opening also launched the Databricks Startup AI Accelerator. Over the next three years, the programme is meant to help more than 100 early-stage companies build AI into their products from the outset rather than bolting it on later. On opening day, founders met the programme’s venture capital partners and took part in a hands-on workshop at the new office.
Student teams tackle local problems with AI
Guests at the opening also heard from the three winning teams of the Databricks AI Social Impact Challenge, a hackathon that drew more than 200 project ideas from students across Singapore’s Institutes of Higher Learning. The winning projects were built around problems Singaporeans deal with directly: overnight heat exposure for elderly residents in HDB flats, flash flood risk alerts, and getting to essential community services. The hackathon runs under Databricks’ partnership with IMDA, which works with the institutes to widen access to industry-relevant data and AI training.
