SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 2, 2026--
Global technology corporation FPT recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sembcorp Development, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sembcorp Industries (Sembcorp), for potential collaboration across the APAC region. Under the MoU, the parties will explore initiatives in artificial intelligence (AI), digital transformation, data centre development, renewable energy and sustainable urban solutions.
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The partnership brings together FPT’s leadership in AI and digital transformation with Sembcorp’s strong track record in energy and sustainable urban development. Initial areas of focus include developing AI-enabled applications for energy, utilities and urban infrastructure, by utilizing smart operations, predictive maintenance, data analytics and automation to enhance operational efficiency, resilience, and customer experience.
FPT and Sembcorp will evaluate opportunities to develop energy-efficient data centres and cloud ecosystem enablement, including the potential implementation of facility management solutions to improve energy optimization and sustainability performance. The scope of collaboration also extends to urban sustainability and renewable energy, where both parties aim to leverage technology for smart city planning, energy transition, carbon management and other ESG-related initiatives.
To support these objectives, FPT and Sembcorp plan to facilitate joint workshops, training sessions, and knowledge-sharing activities, promoting cross-functional collaboration between the companies' business units, innovation teams and subject matter experts.
“Building a sustainable future requires a strong technological foundation, with AI acting as a powerful catalyst. Backed by our full-stack AI capabilities, FPT is ready to facilitate cross-border cooperation in sustainable development by spearheading large-scale digital transformation projects. Together, we will collaborate on ways to deliver practical and scalable solutions that generate lasting value for Vietnam, Singapore, and the broader APAC region”, said David Nguyen, FPT Software Senior Vice President and FPT Asia Pacific Chief Executive Officer, FPT Corporation.
“This collaboration with FPT brings together Sembcorp’s strong track record in energy and sustainable infrastructure with FPT’s capabilities in AI and digital innovation. Our energy and urban developments provide a strong foundation to deploy and scale practical solutions that improve efficiency, resilience and sustainability across our operations and markets. This will enable us to translate digital innovation into tangible improvements across our operations and deliver greater value to the customers and communities we serve,” said Gareth Wong, Chief Operating Officer, Integrated Urban Solutions, Sembcorp Industries.
Since establishing its presence in Singapore in 2007, FPT has expanded into major markets in the APAC region and become a trusted digital transformation partner to over 500 leading enterprises across critical sectors such as aviation, logistics, healthcare, and BFSI. Harnessing deep expertise in AI, cloud, data, automation, legacy modernization, and managed services, FPT has enabled organizations to maximize operational excellence and business impact. This mission is driven by an AI-first approach, leveraging the comprehensive FleziPT platform, a workforce of over 30,000 AI-augmented engineers globally, world-class infrastructure of AI Factories in Vietnam and Japan, and partnerships with global AI leaders. FPT remains committed to making AI a core competitive advantage for both the corporation and its clients.
About FPT
FPT Corporation (FPT) is a globally leading Vietnam-headquartered technology and IT services provider, with operations spanning more than 30 countries and territories. Over more than three decades, FPT has consistently delivered impactful solutions to millions of individuals and tens of thousands of organizations worldwide. With a strong focus on mastering strategic technologies, FPT continues to drive innovation across industries. As an AI-first company, FPT is committed to elevating Vietnam’s position on the global tech map and delivering world-class AI-enabled solutions for global enterprises. In 2025, FPT reported a total revenue of USD 2.66 billion and a workforce of over 54,000 employees across its core businesses.
For more information about FPT's global IT services, please visit https://fptsoftware.com.
The MOU exchange ceremony took place in Singapore during the official visit by the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam and State President H.E. To Lam
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union has moved forward with a vast overhaul of its migration policy, aiming to ramp up deportations and ink controversial deals to build detention centers abroad, in what rights groups compare to the Trump administration's aggressive immigration policies.
“The new regulation will speed up the return process and increase returns of persons who have no legal right to stay in the EU,” said Nicholas Ioannides, deputy migration minister for Cyprus, which holds the rotating presidency of the 27-nation bloc.
The deal was struck between the EU's three main institutions — the European Commission, the European Council and European Parliament — during a so-called “trilogue” Monday evening.
“Europe cannot afford another period of standstill,” said Dutch lawmaker Malik Azmani, who shepherded the regulation through the European Parliament.
“There is an urgent need for an effective return policy with higher return rates," he said, adding that only 28% of rejected asylum seekers return to their country of origin, with the majority staying put in the EU. “This situation is deeply concerning. It undermines public confidence in our common migration policies.”
Critics compared the regulation to the immigration policies of the Trump administration, which has struck a series of secretive agreements with nations around the world to deport thousands of people to countries that are not their own. The United Kingdom also planned to deport migrants to Rwanda, but the plan was bogged down in legal red tape and was dropped when a new government came to power in July 2024.
“Across the Atlantic, we see the violence and fear created by ICE’s brutal immigration enforcement," said Silvia Carter, spokesperson for the Brussels-based Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “Europe should be learning from the harms of that model, not building its own version of it.”
Law enforcement officers across the bloc no longer need warrants from judges to raid private residences or public institutions like hospitals, she said. “The regulation is going to create a draconian detention and deportation machine."
The provisional agreement will now head to the EU lawmakers and governments, where approval will likely be swift.
“These new rules will ensure swifter, simpler, and more effective procedures across the European Union for returning non-EU nationals who have no right to stay, in full respect of international law and fundamental rights,” said Henna Virkkunen, EU commissioner for technology.
EU member nations will soon be able to set up bilateral deals with countries outside the bloc to build deportation centers. At least five EU nations — Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Denmark and Greece — are already in talks with third countries, mostly in Africa, to host “return hubs” on the model of Italy's detention deal with Albania.
“We are delivering the member states tools in their hands to make those agreements and arrangements with third countries,” Azmani said.
Mélissa Camara, a lawmaker from the French Green party, said the deal was “a historic setback” for human rights in the bloc.
“The legalization of return hubs outside the European Union, the green light for the detention of minors, home visits inspired by ICE practices: the legal arsenal serving a xenophobic ideology is now complete,” she said.
The EU has continually tightened migration policies after right-wing parties secured the majority of votes in some countries in the 2024 elections to the European Parliament. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, from the center-right European People’s Party coalition, has said that the new measures will prevent a repeat of the 2015 crisis caused by Syria’s civil war, when about 1 million people arrived to seek asylum.
Fueled by people fleeing conflict and poverty across Africa and the Middle East, the 2015 refugee crisis and successive years of irregular migration to Europe drove a rightward shift in the bloc's politics not unlike the anti-immigrant sentiment that buoyed a “ red wave ” in the 2024 election in the United States.
After successfully campaigning on tougher migration policies, the winners of that election, the European People’s Party, the largest political group in the EU, began negotiating migration reform with centrist and left parties only to eventually sidestep them by allying instead with the far right, said Carter, the asylum rights activist. “There was quite an unprecedented shift in the European Parliament."
Advocacy groups warned the regulation would cut deep into the protections granted by the EU fundamental charter on human rights and expose people to risks outside the bloc.
“This deal will give governments much broader powers to detain and deport people," said Marta Welander, a spokesperson for the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian organization. "It looks set to normalize immigration raids, expand the use of detention in prison-like facilities outside EU territory that are essentially legal black holes, and increase the risk of people being deported to countries where they could face persecution, torture or worse.”
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Follow AP’s coverage of migration issues at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
Police conduct a search operation at a makeshift camp of migrants who want to cross the English Channel to Britain near Dunkirk, northern France, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)
