AI drives Singapore firms to hire beyond local market

Remote research found AI is changing where Singapore businesses hire. All Singapore respondents reported a shift in hiring geography linked to AI adoption.

More than half of the business and HR leaders surveyed said they had already moved roles to new markets because of AI, while 46% said they had expanded into new markets to find workers with AI skills. The findings point to a shift in how employers in the city-state approach workforce planning as they look beyond their home market.

Based on responses from 250 Singapore-based companies, the research also found that pressure in the local labour market is playing a role. Some 80% of respondents said finding qualified talent in Singapore is harder than it was a year ago, while 79% said the same of international hiring.

That difficulty appears to be pushing companies towards overseas recruitment, even as administrative and regulatory barriers remain. Nearly nine in 10 respondents, or 89%, said they would increase international hiring if it were as easy and low-risk as hiring domestically.

Regional search

Singapore employers are looking first to nearby markets. Southeast Asia was the top target region for international talent, chosen by 59% of respondents, followed by South Asia and East Asia at 28% each.

Other regions featured less prominently in hiring plans. The Middle East was selected by 20% of respondents, Europe by 18%, North America by 16%, Oceania by 14%, Latin America by 12%, and Africa by 3%.

The figures suggest Singapore companies are weighing proximity and regional labour pools as they adapt to AI-related changes in staffing. They also indicate businesses are not relying solely on local expansion to fill skills gaps.

Alongside overseas hiring, 47% of respondents said they had increased their search for talent locally. Another 39% said they had widened their search in other markets, while 33% said they had expanded into other markets specifically to address talent shortages.

Hiring friction

Regulation remains a major obstacle for companies trying to recruit across borders. Some 82% of respondents said unclear or conflicting local regulations make it harder to hire or employ talent where they want.

Those hurdles extend beyond recruitment. Employers must manage payroll, contracts, tax obligations, worker classification, benefits, and compliance with local employment rules when taking on staff in other jurisdictions.

Even so, Singapore respondents were less likely than the global average to say talent shortages had already caused direct business damage. Half said their company had missed a key business goal in the past year because of a talent shortage, compared with a global average of 72%.

That gap may indicate employers in Singapore are responding before shortages become more acute. It also suggests companies are treating AI not just as a software issue, but as a factor in decisions about where roles should sit and how teams should be organised.

By the end of 2026, 28% of Singapore respondents said they expected more than half of their new hires to be based outside their primary country of operations. A further 22% said they expected between 31% and 50% of new hires to be international.

The broader survey covered 3,250 business and HR leaders across eight countries: Singapore, the UK, the US, Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, and Australia. In Singapore, every respondent said AI adoption had changed where their organisation hires, slightly above the global figure of 98%.

Eli Chuah, Senior Solutions Consultant for APAC at Remote, said the results showed businesses were reassessing both location and operating structures.

"AI is changing the workforce conversation in Singapore. Businesses are not only asking which tasks can be automated. They are asking where talent should be located, how teams should be structured, and what infrastructure they need to employ and pay people across borders. AI is making access to specialized talent even more important, and the next phase of AI adoption will shift from productivity gains to workforce design: giving businesses the ability to hire and build infrastructure for global, cross-border teams.

Companies need a reliable foundation for the hard parts of global employment, including payroll, payments, local requirements, and compliance guidance. With the right tools and support, businesses can build workflows that fit their needs while managing the requirements that differ by country."