Agoda unveils new APAC Tech Hub in Bangkok

With over 7,000 staff globally, the new APAC Tech Hub in Bangkok will house close to 4,000 employees in Bangkok.

Agoda Services has launched a new APAC Tech Hub in Bangkok as the digital travel platform expands its commitment to the region. The Singapore headquartered company has now moved to a newer and larger office space in Bangkok as it looks to attract and retain the region’s top tech talent.

The new office, located in One Bangkok, also marks a significant milestone in the company’s continued investment in technology hubs across Asia. Spanning more than 26,000 square meters over seven floors, the new office brings nearly 4,000 employees under one roof.

With the focus on creating an environment engineered to attract and retain the region’s top tech talent, Agoda hopes the new hub will accelerate innovation, and strengthen the region’s emergence as a premier destination for technology investment in APAC.

Omri Morgenshtern, CEO at Agoda, shared that Agoda is excited to open this new space at One Bangkok which is designed to support how teams innovate, collaborate and grow.

“The state-of-the-art facilities reflect our investment in creating an environment where people can do their best work and continue building world-class tech that delivers exceptional travel experiences,” he said.

The campus-style office is designed around how Agoda's teams work. The space features purpose-built rooms that support the operation of a global technology platform, including a dedicated Network Operations Center (NOC) Zone for systems monitoring, connected collaboration rooms designed to enable fast, coordinated response, and a professional studio and audio room for content production.

One Bangkok's built-to-suit arrangement allowed Agoda to tailor the environment to its requirements, with a focus on tech, collaboration, and employee well-being. The company has even a war room to deal with cybersecurity issues and has invested heavily on its devices, with modern, ergonomic devices available to employees.

In a conversation with CRN Asia, Idan Zalzberg, Chief Technology Officer, Agoda shared that while the company still practices a hybrid work policy and is fully committed to its AI journey, the new office space will enable teams to have better collaboration, especially when it comes to dealing with new opportunities and challenges.

According to Zalzberg, not only does Agoda build and develop its own tools and applications for its services, but its developers are also constantly working on new digital capabilities, especially with AI enabling the travel platform to have more capabilities.

Zalzberg also said that Agoda ran some tests with various work devices such as monitors with its employees, especially its developers, to see which works best to ensure they get the right products.

“It doesn't make sense to be cheap on the things that take away the productivity of the most expensive asset you have, which is your people. You pay so much for the people to bring them here but then you give them a crappy tool because you're saving a few hundred dollars. It's such a narrow mindset. We invest in people tooling as that's a great investment for us,” said Zalzberg.

As an APAC-born, globally scaled platform, Agoda believes the new office reflects its long-term commitment to the region and supports ongoing business activities, from tech and innovation to strengthening regional business functions that support a network of over 6 million properties and hundreds of thousands of flight routes and experiences.