Google Inc. announced March 27 an expanded investment and training program for Taiwan aimed at deepening the local talent pool in key emerging sectors and positioning the country as a regional digital technologies hub.
 
Under the Google for Taiwan plan, the U.S.-headquartered tech giant has set a goal of cultivating 10,000 artificial intelligence newcomers, 20,000 AI and cloud service developers, and 100,000 digital marketing specialists by 2020. Training will be conducted through online courses, programs jointly organized with local universities, and sessions hosted at the company’s facilities in Taichung and Tainan cities in central and southern Taiwan, respectively.
 
The company is also developing a new office complex capable of housing more than 4,000 employees, double its current workforce in the country, at Taipei Far Eastern Telecom Park in New Taipei City.
 
Speaking at the Google for Taiwan launch ceremony, Vice Premier Chen Chi-mai said that the company’s investment comes hot on the heels of Amazon Web Services’ announcement the day before that it is setting up a second innovative center in New Taipei. These moves highlight strong confidence among leading tech enterprises in the nation’s economy, he added.
 
According to Chen, AI is at the core of Google’s and Taiwan’s strategy for future growth. The government’s commitment to bolstering this emerging field is evidenced by the Digital and Innovative Economic Development Plan, or DIGI-plus, a comprehensive program to upgrade the nation’s internet infrastructure and foster sectors spanning AI, e-governance and fintech, he added.
 
Another target of Google for Taiwan is boosting the internationalization of local tech firms. This will be achieved through such measures as collaborating with think tank Taiwan Institute of Economic Research to produce “Taiwan Go Global,” a report offering businesses insights into emerging economies in Southeast Asia.
 
Also included in the plan are measures to strengthen science, technology, engineering and mathematics education for disadvantaged youths. As part of these efforts, the company’s charitable arm Google.org has donated US$1 million to support a two-year project at Taipei City-based Junyi Academy to develop self-learning STEM materials, with more than 1 million children expected to benefit from this initiative. (CPY-E)