The California tech giant said it would begin selling its 5.8-inch iPhone XS and 6.5-inch iPhone XS Max later this month, keeping the starting price of the company’s top-end model at $999 but bumping the entry price for the version with the larger screen.

Apple also announced a new iPhone XR starting at $749, available in October, with a 6.1-inch display to broaden its pool of buyers.

The phones are updates to last year’s iPhone X (“10”), which marks the 10th anniversary of the smartphone — stretching the screen while keeping the overall handset size at or near that of previous models.

“I think Apple did extremely well here,” GlobalData analyst Avi Greengart said after checking out the new offerings at the unveiling at the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California.

“Overall, this is going to be a very good year for Apple.”

The analyst expected the line-up to be a hit, pushing up the average selling price of Apple smartphones.

The new iPhones have more powerful processors and cameras, and a dual-SIM card feature for top-of-the-line devices. Home buttons were replaced with screen swipes, taps and facial recognition capabilities.

“We are going to take iPhone X to the next level,” chief executive Tim Cook said.

While the iPhone has made Apple the world’s most valuable company, worth more than $1 trillion, it has slipped to third place among smartphone makers as Chinese-based Huawei has grabbed the number two spot behind Samsung.

Analyst Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights & Strategy said Apple had done enough “to keep its smartphone growth going until the competition responds.”

Apple said the XS models would be sold from September 21 and the XR from October 26.

New smartwatch features

Apple also introduced a fourth generation of the Apple Watch with a major redesign — and a series of features designed to improve its performance as a medical and health device.

The watch, sold in the United States from $399 and up, will be available in stores on September 21.

“Apple Watch has become an intelligent guardian for your health,” chief operating officer Jeff Williams said.

The smartwatches are able to detect hard falls, and an electrical heart rate sensor can take an electrocardiogram.

“This is the first ECG product offered over the counter directly to consumers,” Williams said.

“Now you can take an ECG any time, anywhere, right from the wrist.”

The fall detection upgrade is expected to appeal to worker safety concerns in factories or other industrial settings, as well as to elderly or disabled users.

“Identifying a fall may sound like a straightforward problem, but it requires a lot of data analysis,” Williams said.

If a person falls, and then is motionless, the watch will call emergency services, he added.

Moorhead said the health features for the new devices were notable.

“I can see kids buying one for their parents and grandparents,” he said of the smartwatch.

“I believe Series 4 will sell better than all previous models.”

The current version of Apple Watch is the most popular watch in the world, according to Cook.

Apple stressed its devotion to data privacy, saying all health information gathered is encrypted on the smartwatch to be shared only as users see fit.

‘Crossroads’

Research firm CB Insights said Apple is at a “crossroads” a decade after introducing the iPhone.

“Looking for the next wave, Apple is clearly expanding into augmented reality and wearables with the Apple Watch and AirPods wireless headphones,” the firm said.

“But the next ‘big one’ — a success and growth driver on the scale of the iPhone — has not yet been determined. Will it be augmented reality, auto, wearables? Or something else entirely?”

Apple’s event comes with the global smartphone market at near-peak saturation, and without a major catalyst for sales ahead of a likely rollout of 5G, or fifth generation, wireless networks, expected in 2019.

Research firm IDC expects worldwide smartphone shipments to decline 0.7 percent in 2018 to 1.455 billion units, with growth likely to resume as 5G devices become available.

Cook said Apple was nearing the two-billion mark for devices with its mobile operating system known as iOS.

“We are about to hit a major milestone. We are about to ship our two billionth iOS device,” he said.

“This is astonishing — iOS has changed the way we live.”

“Personalization must be at the core of every customer experience. If it isn’t, brands risk losing customers’ loyalty and business,” said Loni Stark, head of Adobe Experience Manager and Adobe Target.

“Adobe has introduced AI and machine learning innovations for over a decade, and these new personalization capabilities further our mission to help companies successfully cater to customers at the individual level, no matter the screen, device or channel.”

Adobe said in its press statement that new capabilities in Adobe Target and Adobe Experience Manager and forward-looking projects from Adobe Research allow marketers to:

Enhance voice interactions: A recent Adobe survey found 64 percent of consumers expect to increase their usage of voice assistants in the next five years, underscoring the growing importance of voice as a brand engagement channel. With Adobe Target, companies can iterate and test voice-based content and offers for assistants such as Amazon Alexa to deliver personalized, voice-driven customer experiences. An airport, for example, can use Alexa to update a traveler on a flight status and provide an offer for a rain coat at a terminal screen based on the weather forecast at the destination.

Optimize for the highest likelihood of an action: Adobe Target now allows marketers and data scientists to dynamically compare a customer’s likelihood of taking an action, such as a purchase or churn, and factor the highest possibility into the customer profile. This enables brands to deliver the most relevant experience based on the desired action. A furniture retailer, for example, can assign a score correlating to an individual’s likelihood to purchase a bed and another for a table. The retailer will automatically promote the item with the higher score when that person visits its website.

Personalize AR shopping experiences: Adobe is previewing an Adobe Research personalization project in development for potential future product integration. Using AI, brands can dynamically change product recommendations in an augmented reality (AR) setting based on customers’ facial expressions. A company selling sunglasses, for example, can provide a selection of aviator-style glasses after the customer furrowed her eyebrows trying on round glasses.

Automate layout design for best performance: Determining a design and layout that will perform best for each customer is a major challenge for brands. With Smart Layout in Adobe Experience Manager, marketers can automatically compose the best performing layout for each customer that adapts to the individual’s behavior. For example, a vacation resort can automatically serve a different design for golf enthusiasts compared to a visitor more likely to use the spa services.

Refine recommendations with AI-powered decisioning: Delivering personalized recommendations to a variety of different audiences at scale is challenging. With Auto-Target marketers will be able to automatically choose the best algorithm to deliver personalized recommendations to a broader spectrum of audiences. A home improvement company, for example, can equally tailor recommendations to its key customer, the home builder, as well as secondary audiences, such as DIYers, within a single campaign. Adobe is also releasing a new recommendations algorithm that automatically factors customer attributes, such as geography or favorite color, that are most predictive of a desired behavior.

Collaborate to refine customer experiences: Marketers are quickly realizing that working in tandem with AI can produce faster, more dynamic customer experiences that drive business value. New Personalization Insights reports in Adobe Target provide marketers with analysis on how algorithms are performing. Insights include what visitor attributes were most influential, what offers resonated most and more. This data can be used to develop more sophisticated tests and further refine AI-driven personalization to ensure the most optimized digital experience for customers.

Adobe Experience Cloud empowers brands to deliver compelling, consistent and continuous experiences across any customer touch point – all while accelerating business growth. Adobe Target is an experience optimization solution in Adobe Marketing Cloud that lets data-driven brands rapidly experiment and create personalized experiences that can be leveraged across any digital touchpoint, including web, mobile, email, IoT devices, call center and more. Adobe Target is used by major brands worldwide including Lenovo, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Philips and Sprint. Adobe Target helps customers address obligations for data governance and privacy design features to comply with GDPR. Adobe was named the only leader in “The Forrester Wave™: Experience Optimization Platforms, Q2 2018” and “The Forrester Wave™: Digital Intelligence Platforms, Q2 2017” reports.

Apple has remained mum about revelations planned for the event at its spaceship campus in Silicon Valley, but the timing fits its pattern of annually introducing iPhone updates.

In a first for Apple, the event will be streamed live on Twitter.

Speculation includes talk that Apple will introduce three new iPhone models infused with features from a premium iPhone X that debuted last year with a $1,000 price tag.

Top among those features will likely be edge-to-edge screens that promise to provide about 30 percent more viewing space without increasing the size of overall handsets.

“I think they are trying to set a new high bar,” analyst Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights & Strategy said of new iPhones expected to offer more display without increasing the size of the handset.

“The big thing is going to be how they fit such a massive screen into such a small device.”

One new iPhone was likely to be priced slightly lower than the X model to “capture the next wave of buyers” in markets such as China, western Europe and the US, according to Moorhead.

While the iPhone has made Apple the world’s most valuable company, worth more than $1 trillion, it has slipped to third place among smartphone makers as Chinese-based Huawei has grabbed the number two spot.

Still, analysts say Apple has a formula that works with a loyal customer base and steady sales.

“Apple doesn’t have to prove anything, other than that they are willing to segment the market more,” Technalysis Research chief analyst Bob O’Donnell said, while pointing out that the company will likely be “offering a wider array of choices.”

Two of the iPhone models predicted to debut on Wednesday were expected to have prices higher than the iPhone X, which has been a hot seller.

While iPhone sales have slowed, Apple profits have risen along with the average purchase price of its handsets.

The newest and priciest iPhone “didn’t help Apple grow its user base but handsomely contributed with dollars to top line, bottom line and market cap,” Counterpoint Research analysts said in a note Tuesday.

– Taking on Galaxy –

Samsung, the world’s biggest smartphone maker, last month unveiled its latest flagship handset, the Galaxy Note 9, and next month Apple rival Google will hold an event at which it is likely to showcase new Android-powered top-end Pixel phones.

Google took to making its own smartphones to showcase the capabilities of the Android operating system that it makes available free of charge to handset makers. Android smartphones have come to dominate the market.

Apple’s event comes with the global smartphone market largely saturated, without a major catalyst for sales ahead of a likely rollout of 5G, or fifth generation wireless networks, expected in 2019.

Research firm IDC expects worldwide smartphone shipments to decline 0.7 percent in 2018 to 1.455 billion units, with growth likely to resume as 5G devices become available.

“We still believe the smartphone market has some healthy growth in the years to come, although finding and competing in those markets and segments is increasingly more challenging,” said IDC analyst Ryan Reith.

Apple has sold more than a billion iPhones since the first model was unveiled by late co-founder Steve Jobs in 2007.

The company is in the unique situation of controlling the hardware and software in its mobile devices, with content for users required to go through its App Store that takes a percentage of revenue.

Finding new streams

With the smartphone market showing little room for growth, Apple has been working to diversify its revenue streams with software, services and other devices including its smartwatch.

The event may see the Apple Watch getting its first significant redesign since its launch three years ago.

“I think that in the long run the watch will be a much larger business than people give it credit for; where Apple can iterate and grow,” analyst Stephen Baker of NPD said.

Apple chief executive Tim Cook has touted fitness and health features of the company’s smartwatch, which dominates that market.

The culture-changing company behind the iPod, iPhone and iPad hit a historic milestone last month, becoming the first private-sector company to surpass $1 trillion in market value.

The landmark was the latest victory for Tim Cook, who faced skepticism when he took over as chief executive in 2011 from Jobs just before his death.

Local governments across the country were ordered to review the backgrounds and qualifications of all drivers signed up with web-based carpooling and other private car-share services.

Drivers and cars deemed unqualified will be removed from such services by the end of this year, said a joint directive issued late Monday by the transport and public security ministries.

Service operators in the meantime must take a range of safety measures including strengthening alarm and rapid-response mechanisms to enable passengers to indicate when they are in danger.

They also will be required to establish 24-hour safety management and emergency response teams, and must furnish real-time information on drivers and passengers to police.

It did not specify how long the suspension would last.

Car-pooling services such as Hitch pair up people moving in the same direction so they can share travelling costs.

Hitch is separate from Didi Chuxing’s main ride-hailing service, which is not affected by the government suspension order.

Didi Chuxing, used by hundreds of millions in China, came under intense criticism last month after a 20-year-old female passenger was raped and murdered by her Hitch driver in the eastern city of Wenzhou.

Didi Chuxing faced boycott calls after it emerged that the company did not act on a complaint about the driver just one day before the killing.

The episode fuelled pressure for greater regulation of carpooling services, which generally face less stringent requirements and oversight than regular ride-hailing.

Didi Chuxing was already under the gun after police said in May that a Hitch driver killed a 21-year-old female flight attendant whom he had picked up.

State media reported she was stabbed at least 20 times and that the killer’s dead body was later found in a nearby river.

Following last month’s murder, Didi suspended Hitch and has temporarily halted all late-night ride-hailing for a week beginning last Saturday while it implements safety measures.

Didi Chuxing muscled Uber out of China in 2016 after a bruising turf battle. It now claims 30 million drivers and more than 550 million users across its various services.

A Didi Chuxing spokesperson told AFP the company had no new comment on the government-ordered safety drive.

Rumors that the South Korean tech titan would unveil its foldable phone at the Samsung Developer Conference have been circulating around the world following a recent interview of the company’s mobile business CEO Koh Dong-jin by a group of foreign media outlets last week.

Samsung has dismissed the rumors, saying the company’s official stance has not been confirmed yet. However, it acknowledged that more details of the foldable phone could be announced at the event, as it is approaching completion of the development.

“We will have more to say about the phone under development by that time, probably some details about specifications,” said a Samsung official.

Some foreign media outlets have criticized Samsung for “teasing” the press, as it has been postponing the unveiling since early this year.

“We have overcome a major technological hurdle for the foldable phone, but we are not sure yet when consumers will be in need of such a new type of phone,” said CEO Koh in February.

However, the CEO had hinted Samsung is gearing up for the foldable phone as the company unpacked the Galaxy Note 9 phone in August, saying, “We will not give up on being the world’s first.”

Koh has revealed the foldable phone will have a foldable screen instead of a display hinge as several earlier patent application images have shown. The company is in the last stage of the development and the phone is expected to be able to be released early next year.

According to some news reports, Samsung’s first foldable smartphone, codenamed “Winner,” is said to feature a 7.3-inch OLED display, which can be folded inward with a curvature radius of 1.5 millimeters. An extra 4.6-inch OLED display is said to be installed on one side of the phone.

The prototype of the foldable model is likely to be built around November, and the phone is expected to make an official debut at the Consumer Electronics Show or the Mobile World Congress early next year.

The SDC is an annual event that showcases the company’s advancements in software and how it wants to go further to make it easier for developers to make applications for Samsung devices. It will take place at Moscone West in San Francisco from Nov. 7 to 8.

The second edition of Samsung’s voice assistant platform Bixby will be presented at the event, while Galaxy Home, its Bixby 2.0-powered artificial intelligence speaker, will be announced with more details.

“Samsung is expected to showcase some of its next-generation products, including the foldable phone and AI speaker in order to retain market attention and not to lose the world’s first title,” said an industry source.

Google Thailand has made a commitment to help Thailand transform digitally through initiatives that merge efforts, technology and resources. The move will focus on empowering individuals, students and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to benefit from Google’s products and services.

Ben King, country director for Google Thailand, said the role of the tech giant would be to make information universally accessible and useful.

Thailand is viewed as a mature market with 45 million people connected to the Internet, and engaging with technology in an increasingly varied way.

Thailand has seen huge growth in digital economy transactions, including ride sharing which exploded from nothing to a US$600 million (Bt19.67 billion) in gross merchant values (GMVs) last year alone. E-commerce has also seen growth of around 40 per cent and is driving toward even greater retail market penetration, with sales now reaching GMV of over $2 billion. Thailand’s digital economy grew from $5.8 billion to $10 billion in 2017, and is on track with projections to surpass $37 billion by 2025.

Affordable access

Google Thailand will focus on four areas in the coming years – affordable access, education, localised content and product, and SMEs. That’s similar to the focus for the past three years and is related to the ecosystem development, but the company has changed its approach, King said.

“Over the last three years, these four themes included affordable access, education, localised content and product, and small businesses. The theme has not changed much, but the change is in the evolution of approach, strategy and activity expansion. Affordable access is about infrastructure and the accessibility of Internet access – and the real challenge is affordability.

“We share this theme a lot over time – digital access and digital opportunity – but in terms of accessing information that grows businesses, develops revenue streams, makes a better life, this is one of the key themes Google has been driving over the past several years,” King added.

Digital literacy 

The second theme is education, which can be divided into two points – digital literacy and skill sets for a professional career. Google Thailand has worked with the Education Ministry through the Google Education Group to help teachers digitise their classrooms and engage students in many different ways ways.

Google’s aim is to help people understand how to maximise their practical use of the Web, learn how to protect themselves and their children, how to create a business online, how to access information in a meaningful way and how to communicate meaningfully with their communities.

Google sees this as the pathway to building digital literacy using grassroots education.

The tech giant also worked with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Digital Economy Promotion Agency (Depa) to train 3,000 community managers over four to five months. Google developed the curriculum.

“In the future, we will evolve a couple of things we have focused on,” King said. “One is the domestic expansion of the digital literacy programme – we are really interested in expanding what we doing with Depa and the Education Ministry to the public and private sectors. We will distribute the curriculum through multiple channels.

“Since it is not a programme run by Google, we can plug into many different education networks and the private sector. This is good for Thailand and good for grassroots education – this is our strategy,” he said.

“Of the 45 million people on the Internet in Thailand, we consider around 20 million people as highly advanced users,” he said. “The other 25 million people are already connected, but not connected all day.”

Google will focus on these 25 million people, increasing their skill levels so they can get the best use of the Internet.

Academy Bangkok

Another area of evolution will be Academy Bangkok, announced by Google at a recent local event. The idea behind the academy is to find the right talents and the right skill sets so as to capture digital opportunities.

“It is the biggest roadblock that businesses have faced. We have tried out a pilot programme over the last eight months, to take great talents from universities and connect them with jobs in the top tiers of big business in the country.

“Now, we’re thinking about expanding this dramatically. We will get space and develop it as Academy Bangkok, which would be launched in October or November depending on when the True Digital Park actually opens,” King said.

Academy Bangkok is a means to build digital skills for professional people. One of the biggest roadblocks in any country with a dynamic similar to Thailand is having people with the right skill sets to capture the amazing digital economic opportunities, he said.

Google partners with businesses to advertise job openings for recent university graduates. The pilot programme this year had 30 spots and got 3,000 applications for the in-depth two-month incubator held in Google’s offices.

With Academy Bangkok, Google plans to support between 150 and 200 recent graduates at a time. And it will increase from one co-host to two co-hosts, so that 300 to 400 recent new grads can be trained for jobs requiring a high level of domain expertise. The graduates will be trained in marketing, entrepreneur and developer skills.

“We probably would not run a specific artificial intelligence course [by the way machine learning and AI are in every Google product such as advertising and marketing products and cloud computing products]. AI will probably be more in line with the products set we cover, rather than being a separate course,” King said.

One specific need in Thailand is for Google’s neural machine translation, which powers Google Translate. With 35 million tourists visiting Thailand annually, the sector is a key driver for the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth. Machine learning is driving and powering this property.

Since Google launched neural machine translation powered by machine learning, it has increased demand, with a 300 per cent increase in Google Translate usage over the last 12 months in Thailand. This is an example how machine learning can improve Google products. Another example is Google Assistant.

Localisation

The localisation of products and services is another focus. Over the last few years, Google launched a whole range of localised products, including localising existing products into the Thai language such as Google Assistant and Google Voice Search.

“We thought about trying Translate for Thailand to power up machine translation, and this theme is continuing. We are looking for the right products for people in Thailand – it could be products that exist globally and we bring to Thailand, or it could be new products,” said King.

Google is also focusing on small businesses. From its perspective, small businesses span two different areas – entrepreneurs and the ecosystem – as exemplified by Google Launchpad Accelerator and Google for Entrepreneurs.

“We have partnered with Hubba, and partnered with the government on Coding Thailand, providing educational material for entrepreneurs on developing the ecosystem,” King said.

There are 2.7 to 3 million SMEs in the market and Google focuses on helping them digitise their business. It aims to make sure they have the right accesses and digital properties and the right information online – so they can really drive discoverability.

That is probably the key – online market is big as the demand is not constrained by geography.

“When somebody searches for products and services we want to make sure the business is discovered.

“This is really about focusing around Google My Business, where Google is really putting a lot of attention in the next 12 months. That is a little about evolution,” said King.

Key products 

The seven key Google products – Google Map, Google Search, YouTube, Gmail, Chrome, Android and Google Play – are heavily used by Thais, King said.

“These seven products have over a billion users at the global scale. They are all very important, but the most important is Google’s mission to get the world’s information online and to be universally accessible and useful.”

He admitted that it is difficult to say which service is most used in Thailand, since they each have different uses.

For example, Search could be used by someone hundreds of time in a day, YouTube could be accessed less often but for longer periods. Google Maps is an important product, as it helps people locate local businesses and services.

One thing that has really undergone change over the past three years is the quick adaptation of consumers, while businesses lag a little behind, said King.

Meanwhile, Google Analytics, Google Advertising Solution and Google Cloud are the key for businesses.

Google Analytics offers the insight of measurement, while Google Advertising Solution provides marketing and advertising help. They are included in YouTube Ad, Search Ad and Display Ads Network functions. Google Cloud infrastructure is available for businesses of all sizes.

“When we looked at what we can do or what we want to do in the country, we asked ourselves what has the most impact and what is it we do really well. We can benefit the country the most by being big and doing it very well. The result was the four key areas of our focus,” King explained.

Artificial intelligence has until now been held back by two main factors: a lack of data and a lack of processing power. The issue of processing power has been resolved by the ever lower prices of micro-chips, meaning the amount of operations one can complete for the cost of one dollar has increased a trillion times since we launched men to the moon.

The amount of data produced has increased at a similarly rapid pace due to our digital lifestyles. Ninety per cent of the world’s data was created in the past two years. Every picture you take, every message you send, every GPS location your phone registers is adding to this ever-growing mountain of information.

To keep up with our changing world, Thailand’s data-science students also need access to both computing power and data, with the latter being the hardest to come by. Data is what powers all the global tech giants like Google, Facebook and Apple. It is most often proprietary and locked behind privacy agreements that require careful anonymisation before a student can gain access to it. This is where partnering with a business could help academics. Data-science students need access to real-world data so they can be challenged to use it in ways that produce real-world benefits, not just theoretical analysis.

On August 16, DTAC unveiled a brand new artificial intelligence laboratory built in partnership with Thammasat University’s Sirindhorn International Institute of Technology (SIIT). Located at Thammasat University’s Rangsit campus just north of Bangkok, the DTAC SIIT AI Lab is a direct response to the challenges facing data scientists in Thailand.

It connects data scientists and leading professors with concrete business cases provided by DTAC, whose customers produce billions of data sets each day. But it also supports DTAC’s AI strategy and ambition to train a new generation of digital talents for Thailand. The investment is worth Bt12 million over the course of two years. One case that DTAC and SIIT are working on is an AI-driven ID verification system that increases security while speeding up the process of SIM registration verification. The solution creates a new customer experience, resulting in faster and more reliable service. We also already use AI in fraud prevention and error detection.

AI is also changing how we interact with machines. Today, over 50 per cent of US households have smart speakers, which is only possible because machines can now process human speech. This marks the rise of invisible interfaces that rely on sight and sound rather than on us clicking, tapping and typing. In the future, these invisible interfaces that allow high levels of personalisation even in brick-and-mortar retail.

Partnerships such as the one between DTAC and SIIT will be absolutely key to developing a generation of Thai data scientists that understand how to channel data to build concrete, real-world solutions to everyday pain points. With over 200 students training at the DTAC SIIT AI Lab each year, I’m positive we will prove Thailand has no shortage of digital talent. We just need to work together to give them the means to reach their full potential.

Ukrit Salyapongs is head of Channel Strategy & Performance Management Division, DTAC.

Starting from Friday, gamers and aspiring esports athletes across Thailand will be able to buy hundreds of digital games without leaving the comfort of their own battle stations.

“Razer is one of the most recognized lifestyle brands for youth and gamers in the world, and we’re thrilled to extend our partnership with the Razer Game Store to Thailand,” said Thanida Suiwatana, chief marketing officer, Lazada Thailand.

“Combined with the official Razer Store on Lazada as well as 155,000 other resellers representing 3,000 brands, Lazada is an online shopping destinationthat brings a complete experience to gamers in Thailand, from the latest keyboards and mice to the hottest games.”

First launched in April 2018, the Razer Game Store is an exclusive source of great PC games on Lazada, providing fans with the ease of buying digital games in their local currency and through payment methods that they’re already familiar with.

For example, customers in Thailand can easily top up their Lazada Wallet through internet banking or by adding balance at convenience stores across the country. They can then use the balance in their wallets to seamlessly purchase games anytime and anywhere.

Thai customers will also enjoy promotions and rebates offered exclusively by Lazada Thailand, such as regular in-app discounts and rebates.

For example, the Lazada “All You Ever Wanted” campaign this September 9 will reward customers with 9.9 percent rebate on every single purchase made with the Lazada Wallet. These games include the latest popular releases like “Overcooked 2,” all-time bestsellers like “Fallout 4,” and even pre-orders for upcoming blockbuster hits such as “Assassin’s Creed Odyssey” and “Metro Exodus.”

As authorized retailers, Razer and Lazada commit to working with some of the biggest names in gaming such as Ubisoft, Bethesda, Bandai Namco, Deep Silver, and Rockstar to ensure that all games sold on the store are authentic and fully licensed.

“Thailand is one of the biggest markets in the world by game revenues, with an estimated 18.3 million gamers[1],” says Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder and CEO.

“The Razer Game Store on Lazada will fuel the rising passion of Thai gamers, whether they’re engaged in multiplayer duels, streaming gameplay, or watching esports teams duke it out on the world stage.”

To celebrate the launch of the store, select individual games will see discounts of up to 90 percent. All customers can also enjoy an additional 10 percent off their first transaction on the Razer Game Store on Lazada, Lazada said in a press statement.

Finally, Razer will be hosting a launch party at the RazerStore in CentralWorld Bangkok on Saturday. Attendees will get to meet and greet Bas Gamer,Thiskk and Tako Chan and have the opportunity to participate in walk-in tournaments and giveaways.

Invitations displayed little more than the internet titan’s logo along with the time and place of the event, set for a studio in New York City.

The Silicon Valley-based company has a history of introducing new “Made by Google” smartphones in October, and there have been a flood of leaked photos and details about third-generation Pixel handsets heading for market.

The update to the Pixel line-up would also come on the heels of an Apple event next week that is likely to star new iPhone models.

Google took to making its own smartphones to showcase the capabilities of the Android operating system that it makes available free of charge to handset makers. Android smartphones have come to dominate the market.

Rumors buzzing include that Google plans to release new Pixel models and perhaps an updated Android-powered smartwatch to go with the handsets.

New Pixel phones are expected to be tuned to take advantage of advancements the company has been making in artificial intelligence.

To be located in Tanjong Kling (formerly known as Data Centre Park), it will support “hundreds of jobs” and form part of Facebook’s growing presence in Singapore and the region, the company said on Thursday (Sept 6).

The data centre targets to start operations in 2022, after which construction will continue for a few years.

Facebook said: “Our data centres are highly advanced facilities that help bring Facebook apps and services to people around the world every day.”

When complete, it will be a 170,000 sq m, 11-storey building that features a facade made out of a perforated lightweight material, which will allow air flow and provide glimpses of the mechanical equipment inside.

Fortis Construction has been appointed general contractor for the project, a result of a “joint experience building efficient data centres”, said Facebook.

Mr Thomas Furlong, vice-president of infrastructure data centres at Facebook, added at the launch event on Thursday that Singapore was chosen for its robust infrastructure, access to fibre, a talented local workforce, and support from government agencies including JTC Corporation and the Economic Development Board of Singapore.

According to Mr Furlong, Facebook has some 1,000 employees in Singapore, and boasts programmes that help local start-ups grow their businesses and promote media literacy.

Trade and industry minister Chan Chun Sing, who graced the launch event, said that Facebook’s presence in Singapore is important in helping the country connect to the rest of the world by transcending the “physical constraints of size and space”, and making the country a part of the global data centre value chain.

The project is also a milestone, in that it “helps break new ground in land utilisation and energy consumption”, said Mr Chan.

Facebook’s new data centre in Singapore is said to be the first to incorporate the new StatePoint Liquid Cooling system, a technology that minimises water and power consumption, and reduce by 20 per cent the amount of peak water used in climates like Singapore’s.