Temus, a Temasek-backed AI and digital transformation consultancy based in Singapore, has announced a strategic investment in Thinking Machines Data Science, OpenAI’s first official Services Partner in Asia Pacific. The strategic partnership aims to scale enterprise AI capabilities and accelerate production-grade AI deployment across Southeast Asia, addressing critical gaps in data readiness and operational integration.
Under the agreement, Thinking Machines will continue to operate under its own brand and leadership as “Thinking Machines Data Science, a Temus entity”. Stephanie Sy remains Founder and CEO of Thinking Machines while joining the Temus leadership team as Managing Director, Applied AI. Clients and partners of both firms will experience no disruption to existing engagements or operational teams.
Addressing Operational AI Challenges in Thailand
The strategic move comes as Thai organizations seek to reduce friction in digital onboarding, system modernization, and AI deployment. The Thai government has designated 2026 as the “Year of Investment,” with AI capability development identified as a primary engine for the country’s next phase of growth. However, many local enterprises continue to encounter operational hurdles, including talent shortages, data readiness gaps, and the necessity of modernizing legacy systems before AI can function effectively at scale.
Promphorn Chaichiwiwat, Thailand Country Manager at Thinking Machines Data Science, emphasized that Thai enterprises are transitioning from experimentation to execution. “Thai enterprises are moving from AI experimentation to AI execution — the hard part now is making it work in the real world, with messy data, real constraints, and operations that can’t afford to fail,” stated Chaichiwiwat. He noted that their Bangkok team has delivered solutions for major Thai organizations, including Banpu, CPF, SET, and PTTGC, and that joining the Temus group extends their service delivery capacity.
Accelerating Regional Production-Grade AI Deployment
Through its regional expansion, Thinking Machines aims to help organizations build foundational requirements for successful AI adoption, spanning data engineering, governance, AI implementation, and workforce enablement. Founded in 2015, Thinking Machines has trained over 10,000 professionals, co-developed hundreds of AI systems, and attained OpenAI advanced partner status. Stephanie Sy, Founder and CEO of Thinking Machines Data Science and incoming Managing Director, Applied AI at Temus, noted that the regional opportunity centers on how rapidly organizations can turn AI into real business value. “Joining the Temus group allows us to pursue that ambition at a much greater scale while staying true to our team, our clients, and our mission,” Sy added.
Temus, anchored in Singapore with a ~500-strong workforce, provides full-stack AI transformation across cloud and application engineering, consulting, and design in alignment with Singapore’s Smart Nation priorities. Sutowo Wong, Managing Director, Applied AI & Data at Temus, highlighted that combining Temus’ transformation delivery capability with Thinking Machines’ decade of AI execution experience creates a deeper bench to support clients across the full spectrum of AI and data work.
Sng Ren Yeong, Chief Executive Officer of Temus, pointed out that regional enterprises face distinct challenges running AI systems under real operating conditions, such as regulatory mandates and complex workflows. “This investment connects two parts of the system that need to work as one — how AI is built, and how it is made to operate at scale,” said Sng. He stated that the combined entity is positioned to help public and private organizations across Southeast Asia transition from AI pilots into sustainable production deployment.
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