Sea and OpenAI Deepen Partnership to Drive AI Across Southeast Asia
Source: Sea Limited
Sea Limited (NYSE: SE) and OpenAI have signed a new strategic partnership agreement that expands their collaboration across e-commerce, small business tools, and developer ecosystems, marking one of the most significant AI partnerships to emerge from Singapore this year. The June 22 ann.
Sea Limited (NYSE: SE) and OpenAI have signed a new strategic partnership agreement that expands their collaboration across e-commerce, small business tools, and developer ecosystems, marking one of the most significant AI partnerships to emerge from Singapore this year. The June 22 announcement covers three areas: integrating Shopee into ChatGPT as a shopping destination, expanding AI access to Shopee seller base, and scaling developer engagement through Codex hackathons across Southeast Asia and Brazil.
Under the partnership, Shopee becomes the first e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Latin America to be available directly within ChatGPT. Users in eight markets including Singapore can discover products through natural language prompts and continue shopping on Shopee. For sellers, ChatGPT for Business will be introduced to Shopee merchant ecosystem, helping them create listings, manage customer service, and automate operations. Sea Chairman and CEO Forrest Li said the partnership reflects a shared commitment to making AI more accessible for the communities Sea serves.
The expanded partnership builds on existing collaboration that began in 2025 when ShopeeVIP members gained access to ChatGPT subscriptions. It follows Sea establishment of an AI Centre of Excellence in Singapore in April 2026, backed by Digital Industry Singapore. OpenAI Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser noted that Sea has built an extraordinary digital ecosystem across some of the most dynamic markets, and the partnership will help bring AI benefits to consumers and small businesses that might otherwise be left out of the AI wave.
Why it matters for Singapore: Sea is one of Singapore most valuable publicly listed companies, and a deepening partnership with the world leading AI lab sends a strong signal about the city-state role in the global AI economy. The deal positions Singapore not just as a consumer of frontier AI but as a platform through which AI reaches hundreds of millions of users across emerging markets. For Singapore-based SMEs that sell on Shopee, the access to ChatGPT tools and training could meaningfully lower the barrier to AI adoption in a market where many smaller merchants still struggle with digital transformation.