Google in Asia Pacific: 10 proud moments from 20 years

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September 1, 2021
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Twenty years ago this month, Google opened the doors of its first overseas office — in Tokyo. The office was rudimentary by today’s standards (the music system was a portable cassette deck). But our founders knew the Asia Pacific region would be central to Google’s mission of making information universally accessible. More importantly, Google also had an enormous amount to learn from the region.

Over the past 20 years, Google’s commitment to Asia Pacific has steadily deepened, and we’re proud to have helped support the region’s extraordinary growth. Today, 2.5 billion people are online here, almost all of them on mobile. We’re honored they use Google’s tools to improve their lives: finding jobs, learning new skills, building businesses, and pushing the boundaries of technology. It’s clear there remains huge, untapped potential for the future if we can continue to lay the foundations with the right investments and initiatives.

To mark the occasion, we wanted to reflect on some of the moments and themes that have defined Google’s 20 years in Asia.

1. Silicon Valley to Shibuya

That first nondescript office in Tokyo’s Shibuya neighborhood was a long way — in both scale and decor — from the

6. “Flappy Bird” and Asia’s new mobile entrepreneurs

Flappy Bird” was another big online moment in 2014. Created by Vietnamese developer Dong Nguyen, the game became a huge hit around the world. It summed up the new possibilities for entrepreneurs building and marketing their mobile apps through Google Play. Today, Asia Pacific is the number one region for mobile subscriptions, the app market and the source of half of all online gaming revenue.

Sundar Pichai in conversation with “Flappy Bird” creator Dong Nguyen. They are sitting on low stools in a street-side cafe in Hanoi, with motorcycles, pedestrians, trees and shops in the background. A smartphone is propped on a stool in front of them.

Sundar Pichai meets “Flappy Bird” creator Dong Nguyen in Hanoi in 2015.

7. New approaches to digital skills

One particular challenge we’ve faced is how to bring digital knowledge and skills to people with limited access to the internet or restrictions on data. In parts of India, that initially meant using a rickshaw equipped with internet-enabled devices, information on using the web and an operator to explain how. Over time, we recognized that to really make a difference, we needed training programs to be embedded in communities — leading to the Internet Saathi initiative where female trainers share their knowledge with other women in their village. Between 2015 and 2020, we provided skills training to 50 million people across Asia Pacific. And we continue to tailor our skills and education programs to local needs, whether it’s our Bangkit initiative in Indonesia (working with local tech firms to nurture talented developers) or our Skills Ignition partnership in Singapore(offering training and work placements for thousands of people).

A woman speaks into a phone to search for information. She’s sitting alongside another woman — an internet ‘saathi’, or trainer — a table with a sewing machine on top, in front of a house with walls painted blue and yellow. Another woman watches on in the background.

The Internet Saathi initiative helps women in rural India use the internet.

8. AlphaGo demonstrates the promise of AI

DeepMind’s go-playing AI AlphaGo made the cover of Nature in January 2016 for being the first AI to ever beat a master at the 3,000-year-old game. In 2017. AlphaGo beat the former world-champion Lee Sedol 4-1 in Seoul. From there, DeepMind traveled to Wuzhen, China, where AlphaGo Master beat world champion Ke Jie 3-0 at the Future of Go Summit — a thrilling event involving the world’s best players. AlphaGo has since retired, but the role of AI in society is only increasing. Today, we’re working with partners throughout Asia Pacific on ways AI can help with challenges like flood prediction and disease diagnosis.

Grandmaster Ke Jie, wearing a suit and sitting on a white chair to the left of a blue table, leans forward to make a move on the board in his match against AlphaGo.

Grandmaster Ke Jie locked in competition with AlphaGo in 2017

9. Investments in the digital future

In September 2017, we brought HTC’s engineering talent into Google — cementing a decade-long partnership with the Taiwanese company, and marking a big step forward in Google’s plans to build devices combining the best of Google software and hardware. Today, our Pixel phones and Nest devices are popular across the region. And we’ve continued to invest in Asian companies bringing the best of technology to hundreds of millions of people, from Indonesia’s Gojek to India’s Reliance Jio. Together with Jio, we’re working on an affordable smartphone that will enable more Indians to get online.

Welcoming new HTC colleagues to Google’s engineering workforce in Taiwan in 2018.

10. Giving voice to polyglot Asia

As of 2020, Google Translate supports more than 30 languages across Asia Pacific. Extending the reach of Google Translate — and improving it with AI — is vital in a region of such vast linguistic diversity. But there are other steps that can make the internet more accessible and helpful: for example, building technology that’s intuitive for people who find it more natural to speak to their device. The rise of ‘voice users’ will be a big theme for Google and the entire tech industry in the decade ahead, and we’ve developed a playbook to guide technology-makers’ efforts.

A woman in traditional dress in Indonesia sits facing the camera and talking to her phone. She’s surrounded by potted plants.

A growing number of internet users in Asia prefer to speak to their phone, rather than type.

The rise of ‘voice users’ will be a big theme for Google and the entire tech industry in the decade ahead, and we’ve developed a playbook to guide technology-makers’ efforts.

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