Бум AI-дата-центров: заявки на инвестиции в Таиланд взлетели на 80%, до $40,6 млрд

AI Data Center Boom: Thailand's Investment Applications Surge 80% to $40.6 Billion

Foreign investors filed applications in the first half of 2026 to invest 1.37 trillion baht ($40.6 billion) in Thailand — 80% more than a year earlier; the main driver of the growth was a wave of artificial intelligence and data center projects. This was reported on July 23, 2026 by Bloomberg Tech.

How Much Thailand Attracted

Foreign investors requested permission to invest 1.37 trillion baht ($40.6 billion) in Thailand over the first six months of 2026 — 80% above the figure for the same period in 2025. This refers specifically to applications for foreign direct investment (FDI), not money actually received: some projects still need to be approved and launched.

• Application total — 1.37 trillion baht ($40.6 billion)
• Period — first half of 2026
• Year-over-year growth — +80%
• Key sectors — artificial intelligence and data centers
• Data source — Bloomberg Tech

Applications for foreign direct investment in

Thailand reached 1.37 trillion baht in the first half of 2026 — an 80% increase year-over-year.

> — according to Bloomberg Tech

What Artificial Intelligence Has to Do With It

The main driver of the surge in applications was projects in artificial intelligence and data center construction, notes Bloomberg Tech. The 80% jump coincided with a wave of investment in computing infrastructure, without which training and deployment of modern AI models would be impossible.

Demand for AI computing power is pushing major cloud providers and hyperscalers to look for new data center sites outside the overheated markets of the US and Europe. Southeast Asia, with its growing energy consumption and proximity to Asian users, is becoming one such destination, and Thailand is competing here for capital with its regional neighbors.

For the country, this is not just one-time figures: every major data center represents long-term investment in power supply, cooling, and connectivity that remains in the economy for years after the facility launches.

What This Means

Thailand is becoming one of the arenas in Asia's race for AI infrastructure: an inflow of $40.6 billion in applications over half a year shows that demand for AI data centers is turning into real investment flows rather than remaining a presentation topic. If even part of these projects reach construction, the region will gain a new pillar of growth — computing power for AI.