Sea Limited and OpenAI have announced a deeper strategic partnership to accelerate AI adoption across Southeast Asia and Brazil.
The collaboration, announced on June 22, 2026, will focus on AI-powered e-commerce innovation, expanding access to ChatGPT for Shopee users and sellers, and increasing the adoption of OpenAI Codex among developers and builders across Sea’s ecosystem.
The partnership targets two of the world’s fastest-growing digital regions and aims to make advanced AI tools more accessible to businesses, developers, and consumers. It also builds on an existing relationship between the two companies, which has already included collaborations around AI-powered shopping experiences, developer programs, and the use of OpenAI technologies within Sea’s operations.
“Our strategic partnership with OpenAI reflects a shared commitment to making AI more accessible and meaningful for the communities we serve. By combining OpenAI’s advanced AI capabilities with Sea’s vibrant ecosystem, we hope to deliver more intuitive AI-native experiences for consumers while enabling businesses of all sizes to use AI to grow and stay competitive in the digital economy.” said Forrest Li, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sea.
Shopee Comes to ChatGPT
As part of the expanded partnership, the Shopee App is now available within ChatGPT for users in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Brazil. According to Sea, this makes Shopee the first e-commerce platform of its kind to be available across Southeast Asia and Latin America within ChatGPT.
The integration allows users to discover products through natural language conversations. Whether they are looking for gift ideas, fashion recommendations, travel essentials, or specific products, users can receive relevant suggestions directly within ChatGPT.
Once they find a product they are interested in, they can seamlessly continue their shopping journey on Shopee, creating a more conversational and personalized shopping experience.
Why This Matters for Southeast Asia and Brazil
The partnership gives OpenAI access to two of the world’s most dynamic digital markets through Sea’s large consumer and business ecosystem. Sea operates major digital businesses across Southeast Asia and Brazil, with Shopee remaining one of the region’s largest e-commerce platforms. This provides a strong foundation for bringing AI-powered experiences to millions of users, sellers, and developers.
The opportunity is significant. Southeast Asia is home to more than 670 million people and continues to see rapid growth in digital commerce and mobile internet usage. The region’s mobile-first consumer base, diverse languages, and fast pace of digital adoption make it an attractive market for AI innovation.
Brazil also represents a major growth opportunity as Latin America’s largest digital economy. Rising investments in AI infrastructure and increasing enterprise adoption of AI technologies are creating favorable conditions for platforms like OpenAI to expand their reach and impact.
Competitive Context and Industry Trend
The partnership also reflects OpenAI’s broader strategy of expanding its presence across Asia through collaborations with leading regional technology companies.
Earlier this year, OpenAI announced a partnership with Grab to enhance customer experiences and improve accessibility features using AI, highlighting its growing focus on real-world applications across the region.
More broadly, the AI industry is moving beyond standalone chatbot experiences. Technology companies are increasingly embedding generative AI directly into products and workflows, including e-commerce, payments, customer support, and software development. The Sea partnership follows this trend by bringing AI capabilities closer to where consumers, sellers, and developers already work, shop, and build every day.
“By bringing OpenAI’s technology into the products and services people already use, we can make AI more useful and accessible in their everyday lives. This partnership will help more consumers discover new AI-powered experiences, give small businesses practical tools to grow, and enable more people to put AI to work as an operating layer across the company and the broader builder ecosystem.” said Denise Dresser, Chief Revenue Officer at OpenAI.
