Taipei: Microsoft's Azure cloud region in Taiwan is currently operational and serving select customers, with plans underway to make it broadly available as the company's local infrastructure expands, according to a senior executive at the technology firm.

According to Focus Taiwan, Alistair Speirs, general manager of Azure Global Infrastructure, shared in an exclusive interview at Microsoft's Taipei office that the Taiwan North Azure cloud region is in the process of being rolled out in stages. Azure, Microsoft's cloud computing platform, offers businesses tools such as computing power, data storage, and artificial intelligence services through the internet, which negates the need for companies to maintain their own computing infrastructure.

Speirs highlighted that while the Taiwan North region is operational, it is still selectively onboarding customers and does not yet possess the full capabilities of other regions, such as those in Singapore, Malaysia, or Japan. He emphasized that it would develop these capabilities over time. However, he refrained from providing a specific timeline for when the Taiwan North region would reach general availability, stating that more information would be shared as it becomes available.

Microsoft has been expanding its footprint in Taiwan since establishing its subsidiary in 1989. In 2020, the company announced plans to build its first cloud datacenter region in the country. By June 2025, Microsoft had confirmed the local infrastructure began operating in 2024, although the exact location in northern Taiwan remains undisclosed. At that time, the range of Azure services available locally had increased significantly, from around 70 to more than 200, with over 100 Taiwanese businesses and organizations utilizing the infrastructure.