Singapore’s Temasek says it plans to lift AI investments

SINGAPORE: Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings, one of the world’s top funds, said on Wednesday it plans to sharply increase investments in artificial intelligence (AI) companies as its net portfolio value rose to another record high.

Temasek said its net portfolio value for the year ended March 31 climbed to S$518 billion (US$401 billion) from S$469 billion the previous year.

“Total shareholder return was up 10.5% for the year, driven by strong performances from its domestic holdings and divestment gains,” it said in a statement.

However, returns were weighed down by fallout from the US and Israeli war against Iran, which sent global energy prices soaring, as well as a stronger Singapore dollar.

Temasek said it plans to raise its exposure in the rapidly growing AI sector to 15% by 2031 from its current 6%.

“We will deploy capital in a disciplined manner across five focus areas of the AI value chain: energy and data centres, semiconductors, cloud services providers, foundation models, and AI applications and software infrastructure,” it said.

“Our belief is that AI will be a foundational capability for long-term value creation, with people at the centre of this transformation,” it added.

Temasek said its AI investments over the year included stakes in US firm Anthropic and ChatGPT maker OpenAI.

Temasek’s footprint extends well beyond Singapore, where it holds stakes in companies such as Singapore Airlines and DBS Group, the city-state’s biggest lender.

Five-year total shareholder returns were up 4.6%, dragged down by “headwinds in China’s capital markets from 2021-2024”.

However, Temasek said it would “continue to be an active investor” in the world’s second-largest economy.