Nicole Tan, Meta’s country director for Singapore, has set her sights on transforming chat apps like WhatsApp and Messenger into primary sales channels for local businesses. Just six months into her role, which she assumed on June 2, 2025, after nine years leading Meta in Malaysia, Tan is championing AI-powered advertising and business messaging as the engines driving future revenue growth. “There’s a very strong growth mindset in Singapore, where people are interested to test and learn,” Tan told The Straits Times.

Singapore firms, Tan notes, outpace their Malaysian counterparts in technology adoption and global ambitions, making the city-state ripe for Meta’s innovations. Her strategy centers on onboarding more organizations to Meta’s AI tools, which automate ad campaigns using machine learning for real-time optimization. Clients such as Shopee and Nespresso already leverage these, with Asia-Pacific businesses seeing a 20% increase in return on ad spend compared to non-users, according to Meta data cited by Tan.

These tools mirror Google’s offerings but emphasize social signals from Facebook and Instagram, turning goals, budgets, audiences, and visuals into dynamic ads and reel videos. “We look at things like dynamic ads and reel video ads. So these are products that use machine learning to help understand what has been doing very well,” Tan explained in the interview republished by The Star.

Singapore’s Testing Edge Fuels Rapid AI Adoption

Tan’s prior experience, including over a decade at advertising agency JWT in Malaysia and China, equips her to push these advancements. Appointed by Meta’s Southeast Asia vice president Benjamin Joe, she focuses on digital empowerment amid Singapore’s role as an innovation hub, as noted in her appointment coverage by Marketing-Interactive. “Singapore is a dynamic market that is spearheading Southeast Asia’s digital transformation,” Tan stated upon her hiring.

Meta’s broader AI investments bolster this local thrust. In December 2025, the company acquired Singapore-based Manus AI for over $2 billion, gaining agentic AI technology for autonomous task execution tailored to small and medium enterprises. Manus, founded by Chinese entrepreneurs and relocated from Beijing, specializes in agents that plan and complete tasks independently, set for integration into WhatsApp and other apps, per reports from TechCrunch and CBC News.

Meta’s chief AI officer Alexandr Wang announced hiring for its Superintelligence Lab in Singapore, signaling deepened commitments. This acquisition aligns with Tan’s vision, enabling AI bots to “pitch, prattle and sell” within chats, positioning messaging as the next sales frontier.

Business Messaging Hits 600 Million Daily Interactions

High on Tan’s agenda is business messaging, unifying WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram into one inbox for direct customer engagement. Globally, users and businesses interact over 600 million times daily, with Meta’s apps reaching 3.5 billion daily users in 2025. In Singapore, adoption thrives: “Especially in Singapore, people love using business messaging. I order my cake on WhatsApp, or I order something on Messenger. It’s a simple way to discover a product and then go straight to being able to talk to somebody on text, and being able to buy that (product),” Tan shared.

Business messaging adoption surged 53% in 2025, with Singapore at 20% regional growth in Asia-Pacific, led by Malaysia at 25%, according to a report highlighted by Geekflare. Meta’s Q2 2025 earnings underscored WhatsApp’s role in multi-billion-dollar growth, fueled by AI automation and lower pricing.

Clara Shih, Meta’s head of Business AI since November 2024, oversees expansions like AI sales agents driving 3x conversions across channels, as detailed by Single Grain. These agents handle inquiries, qualify leads, and recover carts in real-time on WhatsApp and social DMs.

Navigating Scams and Regulatory Pressures

Tan addressed challenges like Singapore’s 2024 government criticism and 2025 threats of up to $1 million fines under the Online Criminal Harms Act for failing to curb Facebook impersonation scams. Cases nearly tripled to 1,762 in early 2025, costing $126.5 million, with Facebook as the top platform, per Reuters and CNA.

Meta rolled out scam reporting tools, advertiser verification, and partnerships, with Tan affirming, “Nobody wants that on our platform, least of all us.” A September 2025 directive mandated facial recognition and prioritized Singapore reports by September 30, averting fines.

Despite 2022 layoffs impacting Singapore, Tan emphasized the APAC headquarters’ importance. Meta’s anti-scam efforts on WhatsApp complement this, amid rising AI chatbot use saving businesses 2.5 billion hours yearly, per Trengo.

AI Agents Reshape Sales Automation

Manus integration promises agentic AI for WhatsApp, autonomously handling bookings or rebookings within chats, as envisioned by CX Today. Unlike prompt-dependent chatbots, these agents act independently, boosting efficiency for Singapore SMEs.

Meta AI hit 1 billion monthly users by May 2025 across platforms, with 4 million advertisers adopting generative tools, according to 9cv9. In APAC, tests show 12-32% ROAS lifts from tools like Value Optimization, per Mi3.

Tan eyes AI bots turning chats into storefronts, leveraging Singapore’s eagerness. As Meta hires locally and integrates acquisitions, her leadership positions the market at the forefront of conversational commerce.

Global Momentum Meets Local Priorities

Mark Zuckerberg highlighted business messaging’s potential, citing Thailand’s 2% GDP via apps and WhatsApp overtaking iMessage in the U.S. soon, as shared in X posts analyzing Meta earnings. Singapore’s 20% adoption growth aligns with this, positioning it as a testbed.

With Manus operating from Singapore post-acquisition and facing China scrutiny per CNBC, Meta doubles down on compliant innovation. Tan’s push, backed by real metrics and strategic buys, signals chat apps evolving into indispensable sales hubs for Singapore enterprises.