Plaud doubles Singapore bet to $20M, opens Asia-Pacific base

What's the deal? AI note-taking startup PlaudDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → opened its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Singapore on September 16 and committed to investing at least $20 million there. The company will expand engineering, product development, and regional operations from a 15,000-square-foot office at the Marina Bay Financial Centre.

The details: The new commitment doubles Plaud's original $10 million pledge announced in June. Its Singapore team grew from 10 to roughly 100 staff in nine months, with plans to reach 150.

What does Plaud do? Founded in 2021 by chief executive officer Nathan Xu and former Shenzhen factory owner Charles Liu, the company launched the Plaud Note in 2023 — a voice recorder that transcribes and summarises calls and meetings using AI.

Why Singapore? The city serves as Plaud's base across 12 markets outside Japan and mainland China, including Australia, India, Indonesia, South Korea, and Vietnam. Xu cited local talent and safeguards: "Some of the best engineering and product people in Asia are in this city. Singapore also has great digital security and privacy, which is very important for AI products."

What's the endgame? Xu framed the mission as freeing people from routine work. "We want people to stay present in their conversations, with the people in front of them, and let the AI take care of the rest," he said.

The signal: Singapore is positioning itself as a regional testbed for global AI firms. "We are a small country and cannot compete on scale," said Rahayu Mahzam, minister of state for digital development and information, adding the country aims to be "a place where global companies can develop, test and scale AI products for the region and the world."

Read more: straitstimes.com

Image credit: Romain Pontida