Singapore-based SLiquid at forefront of Southeast Asia's data center transformation

As data infrastructure emerges as a new frontier for regional collaboration, data center solution provider, SLiquid, is stepping up its presence in Southeast Asia by introducing localized liquid cooling technology to support the region's accelerating demand for efficient and sustainable computing.

The company unveiled its first region-specific cooling distribution unit (CDU), the CDU-22400W, earlier this month at the Data Centre World (DCW) Asia 2025 in Singapore, Asia's largest data center industry event.

The move comes as the Asia-Pacific region experiences a massive expansion in data center capacity, which Moody's Ratings forecasts will more than double by 2030, requiring capital expenditure of about $800-$900 billion.

"The Southeast Asian market presents substantial demand for liquid cooling technology, though customer understanding still lags about three years behind mature markets like China," Teny Zhang, chief technology officer (CTO) of SLiquid, said.

"In liquid cooling, China boasts the most mature supply chain," Zhang said. "This allows us to leverage our proprietary technology and domestic industrial capabilities to effectively serve the global market."

SLiquid's new CDU product addresses the challenges of tropical environments and rising chip densities in AI computing, with each unit supporting up to 16 high-density AI cabinets at 120 kW, according to the company.

"By narrowing the temperature approach between cooling circuits to below 3 degrees Celsius, we help customers reduce power consumption by at least 20 percent," Zhang said.

As AI applications continue driving demand for efficient computing infrastructure across Southeast Asia's growing digital economies, specialized CDU providers like SLiquid are positioning themselves at the forefront of the region's data center transformation, according to Zhang.

"With chip power density surging in recent years, some suppliers have even adopted liquid cooling solutions at the chip level," Zhang said. "This has inevitably led to the transition toward liquid-cooled data centers, a shift driven fundamentally by market demand."

According to market consultancy Mordor Intelligence, the global data center liquid cooling market will reach $5.52 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach $15.75 billion by 2030, a 23.31 percent CAGR.

According to Zhang, SLiquid also seeks local cooperation in its expansion strategy.

"We are establishing comprehensive collaborations with a number of local partners specializing in delivery, services, engineering, and design capabilities," Zhang said. "This enables us to better support our clients throughout the entire project lifecycle — from initial planning and design to final delivery and ongoing support — providing integrated, end-to-end solutions."

"Building a local team is crucial," the executive emphasized. "We must use localized employees and teams to communicate effectively with customers."