Microsoft Corp. said today it’s planning to expand into Taiwan with a new cloud data center region.

It will also make a “significant investment” in the territory’s local talent, with the aim of developing the digital skills of more than 200,000 people by 2024.

Microsoft said the new cloud data center region will host its Azure cloud services along with Microsoft 365 when it opens, with Dynamics 365 and Power Platform services to be added later. The region will also feature multiple Availability Zones, though Microsoft didn’t say exactly how many.

Availability zones are physically separate locations within each Azure region comprised of their own data center, independent power, cooling and networking, the goal being to ensure high availability of its services. The company employs a policy of establishing a minimum of three of these zones within each Azure region to safeguard against application and data center failures.

The facility will be environmentally friendly too, fully powered by renewable energy sources starting in 2025 as part of the company’s goal to be completely carbon-negative by 2030, Microsoft said. It will also support more than 90 compliance certifications to meet local industry and regulatory standards.

Microsoft added that it has partnered with several important Taiwanese firms, including Acer Inc., Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd., Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Trend Micro Inc., to build customized applications for customers in the country.

“Providing access to scalable, low-latency and secure cloud services will equip Taiwan’s public and private sectors with the latest AI and IoT technologies, while meeting the highest cybersecurity, data residency and compliance standards,” Microsoft Taiwan General Manager Ken Sun said in a statement. “Microsoft is committed to fueling innovation and economic growth in Taiwan as it transforms into the next Asian technology hub.”

Microsoft has already made some significant investments in Taiwan over the last 30 years. Some of its recent projects there include establishing an “internet of things” innovation center, an artificial intelligence research and development center, and a startup accelerator.

Its existing Taiwan Azure hardware systems and infrastructure engineering team will expand too, Microsoft said. The company wants to transform the territory into a “hub in Asia for innovation” in cloud software and hardware infrastructure for AI, IoT and edge products.

Meanwhile, Microsoft’s training initiative in Taiwan hopes to arm a minimum of 200,000 people with “digital skillsets” in the next four years. There will be skills acquisition programs for young people, nonprofit organizations, enterprises and startups, Microsoft said. The company intends to work with major universities across Taiwan to improve the skillset of students, business leaders, entrepreneurs and C-level executives. The initiative will also see Microsoft work with industry associations to create reskilling workshops for women in Taiwan.

“With Taiwan’s expertise in hardware manufacturing and the new data center region, we look forward to greater transformation, advancing what is possible with 5G, AI, and IoT capabilities spanning the intelligent cloud and intelligent edge,” said Jean-Philippe Courtois, Microsoft’s executive vice president and president of global sales, marketing and operations.

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