Submarine cables have become the lifelines of connectivity, carrying the Asia Pacific’s booming data traffic across borders and oceans. With over half of the world’s internet users residing in the region, demand is being driven by cloud adoption, e-commerce, streaming, gaming, and the rapid digitization of industries.
Navigating this dynamic and complex landscape is no small feat. APTelecom has positioned itself at the forefront of this progress by executing submarine cable projects, ensuring long-term resilience and sustainability. In an exclusive interview with Telecom Review Asia, APTelecom’s President and Co-Founder, Sean Bergin, shared his perspective on the challenges, opportunities, and strategic priorities shaping the Asia Pacific’s connectivity landscape.
Submarine cables are the backbone of global connectivity. How do you see demand for new systems evolving in the Asia Pacific, and where does APTelecom fit into this growth story?
The Asia Pacific region is at the center of global data growth. More than half of the world’s internet users live here, and demand continues to be driven by cloud adoption, e-commerce, gaming, streaming, and the digitization of entire industries. As a result, we are seeing a strong pipeline of new submarine cable projects—both large, regional systems and more specialized builds designed to create redundancy and resilience for critical hubs.
Another major factor is the need for secure and resilient infrastructure. Carriers, hyperscalers, and wholesale buyers are rethinking where their data flows and which routes they depend on.
Trusted supply chains and reliable routes are becoming as important as raw capacity.
APTelecom fits into this growth story by operating at the intersection of commercial demand and practical execution. We help clients design and finance new systems, navigate local requirements, and structure partnerships that ensure long-term sustainability. Our role is not only to connect markets technically, but also to connect the right stakeholders so projects can move from concept to reality.
APTelecom has worked extensively across emerging and developed markets. What strategies have been most effective in helping clients expand and succeed in diverse geographies?
The biggest lesson from our work is that “one size fits all” does not work in digital infrastructure. Each market has its own regulatory framework, investment appetite, and commercial culture. Our strategy has been to combine global best practice with deep local engagement.
That often means building trust at multiple levels: with regulators who need comfort on security, with investors who need clear risk-reward structures, and with wholesale customers who demand scalable, price-competitive, and reliable services. In developed markets, the conversation may focus on sustainability and ESG compliance, whereas, in emerging markets, the priority may be bankability, power availability, or basic route diversity.
What has worked best for our clients is our ability to serve as both translator and bridge. We can explain a hyperscaler’s requirements to a regional operator or help a Southeast Asian carrier understand how to structure contracts with a global buyer. That alignment of incentives, expectations, and timelines is where APTelecom adds real value.
APTelecom has been active in forging partnerships across the region. Can you share some of the most recent collaborations and its impact on connectivity in Asia?
Partnerships are at the heart of our approach because no single entity—carrier, government, or hyperscaler—can deliver these complex systems alone. A recent example is our work with a consortium of regional operators to build new connectivity that will link Vietnam with key hubs in Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia, and connect data center campuses in these markets. By anchoring Vietnam more firmly into the regional network, creating trusted landing points, and diversifying routes, this project will materially improve resilience for the wider region.
We are also engaged with partners in Africa and the Middle East, where Asia-linked systems increasingly play a role in connecting to Europe and beyond. These collaborations create new opportunities for traffic exchange and investment, strengthening Asia’s position as the global connectivity crossroads.
The impact of these partnerships is tangible: more capacity on key routes, greater route diversity, and enhanced reliability for carriers, hyperscalers, and dark fiber buyers. These are the stakeholders who depend on scalable and trusted infrastructure to support their own customers, and our projects are designed with their long-term growth in mind.
What are APTelecom’s near-term priorities and how can clients seek to futureproof their infrastructure investments?
Our near-term priority is to continue supporting projects that deliver both commercial value and strategic resilience. That means helping clients plan not just for today’s demand, but for where traffic and risks will be five or ten years from now.
Futureproofing starts with diversification: multiple cable routes, open CLS facilities, and a mix of terrestrial and subsea connectivity. It also means adopting contract structures that allow for flexibility—whether in scaling capacity, adding partners, or integrating new technologies.
For APTelecom, another priority is workforce and knowledge transfer.
Many markets we operate in are talent-constrained, so, part of our mission is to ensure local engineers and operators have the skills to manage infrastructure over the long term. That is a sustainability issue as much as an operational one.
Finally, the subsea industry is in a phase where advances in technology and rising demand are reshaping how infrastructure is planned and delivered. Helping clients choose the right partners, avoid unnecessary risks, and build infrastructure that will be trusted by carriers, hyperscalers, and dark fiber buyers alike is the best form of futureproofing.
