China-based Huawei announced at its Asia-Pacific Innovation Day in Bangkok plans to invest $81 million in the Southeast Asia region over the next three years to support the development of the digital economy and ecosystems.

The company said in a statement the investment, part of a newly unveiled developer enablement plan for the region, will be used to build OpenLabs to empower cloud developers and cultivate ICT talent.

James Wu, president of Huawei’s Southeast Asia unit, said: “Through APIs and development platforms, we will open up our capabilities to our dev partners in the region. It’s a huge opportunity for developers to create targeted solutions for industry digitisation and grow their own businesses.”

Wu said Huawei will open an OpenLab in Delhi in August which, along with one opened in Bangkok on 1 June, will serve as open innovation platforms between Huawei and local partners to develop industry solutions for the region.

Digital plan
In his keynote, Thailand’s deputy prime minister Somkid Jatusripitak (pictured, sixth from right), outlined how the country’s digital strategy is driving the transformation and modernisation of its economy. He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to creating a favorable environment for digital innovation.

Guo Ping, Huawei’s rotating chairman (pictured, sixth from left), highlighted the importance of the digital ecosystem, noting “many economies in the Asia-Pacific region have set out on their digital transformation journey. But growth has been uneven. The gap between developed and developing economies is widening”.

“Ecosystem is critical here. Governments need to take the lead, industries need to proactively do their part and individuals need to work to improve their digital skills. We will collaborate openly and extensively, and happily share our own slice of the market with others. Together, we can grow the industry and make the pie bigger for everyone involved.”

At the event Huawei signed an MoU with Thailand’s National Science and Technology Development Agency and National Innovation Agency outlining a number of joint research and innovation objectives aimed at accelerating the country’s digital transformation.