China Is Building Southeast Asia’s Internet—But It Doesn’t Control It Yet

Beijing is laying the digital rails across Southeast Asia—fiber-optic cables, data centers, and 5G networks. But when it comes to setting the rules for how that infrastructure is used, China is still playing catch-up. That is the key takeaway from a new analysis of China’s digital push in the region. The country has become the dominant builder of physical internet infrastructure in countries like Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Chinese firms have won major contracts to lay undersea cables and build cloud servers. However, infrastructure is not the same as influence. The rules that govern data flows, cybersecurity, and e-commerce in Southeast Asia are still being written by local governments, Western tech giants, and regional blocs like ASEAN. China has so far failed to export its own model of internet governance—one that favors state oversight and data localization. In short, Beijing is providing the pipes, but not yet the policy. Whether it can turn its hardware advantage into rule-setting power will depend on its ability to win over regulators and businesses in the region. For now, the digital order in Southeast Asia remains up for grabs.