OpenAI in Talks to Lease 100,000 Sq Ft at Shaw Tower as AI Firms Expand Singapore Footprint

OpenAI is negotiating to lease about 100,000 square feet spanning five floors at the 32-storey Shaw Tower, which has 435,000 sq ft of office space and received its Temporary Occupation Permit in mid-June.

The company currently operates out of The Work Project’s facility in CapitaSpring, where it leases about 100 desks. If concluded, the Shaw Tower deal would mark a significant step-up for the San Francisco-based company’s real estate presence in Singapore.

OpenAI has big plans in the city-state. In May, it announced it will open its first Applied AI Lab outside the US in Singapore and hire more than 200 specialised AI professionals over the next few years, as part of a S$300 million investment. It also signed a memorandum of understanding with Singapore’s Ministry of Digital Development and Information to advance applied AI innovation.

OpenAI’s biggest rival Anthropic has also set up shop in Singapore, leasing about 100 desks within The Executive Centre facility at Ocean Financial Centre in Collyer Quay. In June, Anthropic signalled its intention to expand Singapore operations. Singapore leads Anthropic’s AI model Claude usage per capita globally, GIC noted in April this year.

French generative AI unicorn Mistral AI recently leased a dedicated office space in Asia Square and is scheduled to move in by early October. In May, its CEO Arthur Mensch said the firm is looking to boost its Singapore headcount from 40 to 100 by the year’s end, calling Singapore a “great place to hire from” and noting the firm has invested “multiple dozens of millions of dollars” in its Singapore operations.

Keppel South Central in Hoe Chiang Road has been attracting AI companies. Sierra, the conversational AI enterprise platform set up by Bret Taylor and Clay Bavor, has leased about 10,000 sq ft with the first right for another 10,000 sq ft. Sierra established its Singapore presence through a partnership with Singtel and has hired about 30 people locally, making it the firm’s fourth largest office outside the US.

Manus AI, the Chinese-developed, Singapore-based autonomous AI agent start-up, is also heading to Keppel South Central. The firm has committed to about half of the 20,714 sq ft that flexible workspace operator Industrious (formerly The Great Room) has leased on Level 10 of the 33-storey building, with the option to take the rest after a specified period.

Manus is moving out of Meta’s Singapore offices in Marina One after China blocked Meta’s acquisition deal in April. On Aug 11, Manus said it would “soon return to operating as an independent company”.

Shaw Tower’s biggest tenant so far is Allianz, which has leased about 78,000 sq ft in the low zone. Other low-zone tenants include Industrious and Sanofi. High-zone tenants include payments technology firm Adyen and BeOne Medicines. The development also offers about 15,700 sq ft of retail and F&B space including a rooftop restaurant, and about 21,000 sq ft of community-centric facilities.

The building is owned by Shaw Towers Realty under The Shaw Foundation Hong Kong, with Lendlease handling development, project, construction, asset and property management.

Property consultants have been enthused about AI firms entering Singapore, seeing them as a new pillar of office demand. However, Savills Singapore executive director Alan Cheong cautioned that “the AI technology is advancing rapidly and we are not sure where the road will lead us to”. He noted that only when the tech stabilises and AI firms develop permanent marketing and support roles will AI become a confirmed additional pillar of office demand.