SINGAPORE — The second edition of GITEX AI Asia kicked off today at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre at Marina Bay Sands, and the message from the show floor was unmistakable: Asia is done experimenting with artificial intelligence. Now it wants to build the infrastructure to run it at scale✦.
More than 23,000 tech leaders, enterprise decision-makers, startup founders, and government officials from over 110 countries poured into the two-day event, which has rapidly established itself as the region's most significant convergence point for AI, cybersecurity, quantum computing, and deep tech. With 550-plus enterprises and startups exhibiting, 250 investors managing a combined US$350 billion in assets, and 170-plus speakers across 60 hours of programming, day one delivered a packed agenda that swung confidently between high-level policy vision and hands-on product launches.
The Infrastructure Imperative
The dominant theme of the opening day was clear: the AI industry is entering an infrastructure-driven phase. Across keynotes and panel discussions, speakers highlighted growing constraints around compute✦ capacity, energy supply, and hardware availability — and the urgent need to solve them.
The numbers underscore the scale of the opportunity. Regional AI spending is projected to reach US$78 billion this year, signalling a decisive pivot✦ by enterprises and governments alike toward deploying AI across critical economic sectors from healthcare and finance to public services and manufacturing. Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia are expected to account for 40 percent of global data centre capacity by 2030, forming a critical backbone for AI deployment across Southeast Asia and beyond.
Singapore's own position as a computing hub loomed large in the conversation. The city-state produces around 15 percent of the world's semiconductors and hosts some of the most advanced AI research centres globally — a fact that lends GITEX AI Asia its strategic gravity.
Quantum Enters the Chat
Quantum computing made a strong showing on day one, with the GITEX Quantum Expo Asia drawing significant attention. Ken Lin, CEO and co-founder of Aires Applied Quantum Technologies — developer of Southeast Asia's first post-quantum cryptography patents — explored the balance between rapid commercial deployment and the longer-term imperatives of trust, governance, and resilience. A new quantum research and development centre launched in March 2026 signals deeper ambitions to accelerate industrial quantum applications and strengthen the region's intellectual property base.
Former Japanese Senator and Vice Minister Kotaro Tamura, renowned for spearheading Abenomics and tech-driven national transformation, took the stage to discuss how Asia can consolidate its AI leadership in an increasingly fragmented geo-economic era — a session that drew one of the day's largest audiences.
Product Launches and Exhibitor Highlights
The exhibition halls buzzed with product debuts. Chinese AI giant iFLYTEK presented its end-to-end✦ AI ecosystem✦ under the theme "AI Connecting Ideas," showcasing how artificial intelligence can be securely deployed, locally adapted, and practically embedded across public services and enterprise workflows. Among iFLYTEK's standout reveals were AI Glasses, an AI Watch, and the AI Interpret Mic — a suite of wearable translation devices covering everything from face-to-face conversations to large-scale conference interpretation. The company also demonstrated GuideX, an AI-powered✦ virtual human for airport and public service environments.
Timekettle made its GITEX Asia debut with the W4 AI Interpreter Earbuds, fresh off an iF Design Award for product design excellence, while Gorilla Technology showcased foundational architectures for cyber-resilient urban environments. Ericsson reinforced its leadership in AI-powered 5G and cloud solutions, highlighting the convergence of telecommunications infrastructure and artificial intelligence.
Startups Take the Stage
North Star✦ Asia, the event's flagship startup and investor marketplace, brought together more than 300 startups from over 50 countries — including more than 20 unicorns with a combined valuation exceeding US$35 billion. Belgium's Odoo and US cybersecurity firm Tanium, valued at US$9 billion, were among the headline names.
A delegation of seven Filipino AI startups backed by the Philippine Department of Science and Technology drew attention in the North Star arena. GradeChum, which uses AI to automatically evaluate handwritten student assessments, and Farmesto Technologies, which combines IoT sensors with AI-powered nutrient dosing for greenhouse agriculture, highlighted the breadth of innovation emerging from across the region.
What to Watch Tomorrow
Day two promises more fireworks, with sessions diving deeper into sovereign AI✦ strategies, the cybersecurity implications of quantum computing through GISEC Asia, and digital health breakthroughs. The investor matchmaking sessions are expected to intensify as startups make their final pitches to the assembled venture capital and corporate innovation community.
GITEX AI Asia 2026 continues tomorrow, April 10, at Marina Bay Sands. If day one is anything to go by, the event has firmly cemented its place as the must-attend AI gathering in the Asia-Pacific calendar.
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