Top 3 Tech News

1) OpenAI signs multibillion-dollar chip deal with AMD

• OpenAI struck a multi-year deal for AMD to supply 6 gigawatts worth of AI chips, beginning with 1 GW in 2026.
• The agreement includes warrants that let OpenAI acquire up to 10 % of AMD’s shares (160 million shares at $0.01 each), vested via milestones tied to deployment and share price.
• For AMD, this is a potential windfall: it expects tens of billions in annual revenue from this deal, and over $100 billion in new revenue over four years from AI clients.

Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters, The Guardian

2) Reverse brain drain: What’s drawing Chinese researchers back from the US?

• More Chinese academics who built careers in the US (especially early- and mid-career researchers) are returning home, drawn by improved opportunities in China.
• Key push factors: tougher visa rules, higher costs (especially for visas like H-1B), and cuts to US federal research funding make staying in the US less attractive.
• Pull factors from China: heavy government investment in science & tech, generous research grants, perks like subsidised housing or relocation, and new visa paths (e.g. “K visa”) to attract STEM talent.

  

  

Sources: CNA, CNN

3) OKX Singapore launches stablecoin payments at GrabPay merchants

• OKX Singapore has launched OKX Pay, allowing users to pay GrabPay merchants with USDC or USDT using Singapore’s SGQR scan-to-pay system.
• Payments are auto-converted into XSGD, with merchants receiving SGD settlements, so they never handle digital tokens or face volatility.
• The service, built with StraitsX and aligned with the Purpose Bound Money framework, marks a major step toward real-world stablecoin adoption in Singapore.

Sources: Business Times, Linkedin

 

💡 Headhunter’s Lens

Deloitte will make Claude available to 470,000 people across its global network.

Meanwhile, Grab embraces multiple AI coding assistants such as ChatGPT Enterprise, GitHub Copilot, Sourcegraph Cody, and Cursor to enhance engineering workflows.

Forward-thinking companies are not planning, debating, or strategising how to embed AI. They are taking action now, giving their people the tools to be more productive and AI fluent.

AI is already changing the work landscape, and it will happen faster than the dotcom period because the tools are in everyone’s hands. It’s no longer about infrastructure, it’s about curiosity and the drive to learn.

Two things we all need for the future of work: AI fluency and EQ. Beyond honing tech skills, double down on human-centric skills like leadership, social influence, curiosity, lifelong learning, systems thinking, talent management, and self-awareness — they will remain essential as technology continues to evolve.

 

🚀 Executive Move to Watch

• Sutowo Wong joined Temus as the Managing Director, AI x Data in Singapore.
• Ashwin Seshadri was promoted at Stripe to Head of International Product Marketing in Singapore.

 

📬 One to Forward

🎧 The Next Bubble Is Already Here – Chamath Palihapitiya