Back to the region that shaped him: Flint Partner Chris Martin on leading Flint's APAC tech practice

Chris Martin joins Flint as a Partner based in Singapore to lead Flint's APAC tech practice, bringing more than 20 years of experience in AI policy, digital infrastructure, cybersecurity, data governance, connectivity and trade across the region. Before joining Flint, he spent five years building an APAC policy business from the ground up.

Q: You're relocating to Singapore to lead Flint's APAC tech practice. What drew you back to Asia, and how does this moment feel different from your earlier years building out the region? 

Interestingly, many of the reasons that drew me to Asia in 2016 remain true today. The centre of global economic growth continues to shift east, and the region remains where many of the world's biggest technology policy questions are being tested. It's where ideas emerging from Washington, Brussels and Beijing meet the realities of highly diverse set of countries, cultures, and peoples. 

What's changed is that Asia is no longer simply responding to global policy trends – it's increasingly shaping them. We're seeing that in areas like cybersecurity and online safety, and I expect AI will follow the same path. 

The geopolitical backdrop has also become much more complex. US-China competition, regional security dynamics and economic resilience are now influencing policy decisions across sectors, from technology to energy and financial services. 

And, of course, Singapore still has some of the best food in the world. 

Q: You spent five years building an APAC policy business from the ground up. What did that experience teach you about how tech policy work actually gets done in this region – and what attracted you to Flint? 

One lesson is that there's no single way to do policy in Asia. Success depends on understanding both the regional picture and the nuances of individual markets. 

Relationships matter everywhere, but in Asia they're often built over years of sustained engagement. Understanding how decisions are made – and why – is just as important as understanding the policy itself. 

One of the things that attracted me to Flint is the breadth of expertise across the firm. Technology increasingly touches every sector, so being able to draw on colleagues with experience in government, competition authorities, sovereign wealth funds and industry gives us a much broader perspective when advising clients. 

That combination of regional insight and deep sector expertise is a real differentiator. 

Q: AI governance is moving at very different speeds across Singapore, Korea, Australia and the rest of Asia Pacific compared with Brussels or Washington. How should global tech companies be thinking about that divergence? 

No one is standing still. 

Governments are all trying to balance innovation with appropriate safeguards, but they're taking different approaches. Even over the past year we've seen significant shifts – from changes in US thinking on frontier AI to renewed efforts in Europe to streamline aspects of its regulatory framework. 

Across Asia we're seeing a period of policy experimentation. Governments are testing different models, while businesses are looking closely at which approaches can scale across markets. 

One important difference across much of Asia is that public trust in AI tends to be higher than in many Western markets. That gives governments greater confidence to focus on deployment while building safeguards alongside implementation, rather than waiting until every question has been answered. 

Flint is involved in that work directly through initiatives such as the Agentic AI Sandbox with Singapore's Cyber Security Agency, IMDA, GovTech and a leading model developer. Over the next 18–24 months we'll have much better evidence about what works, and that will shape the next phase of AI regulation across the region. 

Q: Where do you see the sharpest points of intersection between global platform competition, data/privacy rules and AI policy playing out in APAC right now? 

Data sits at the centre of almost every AI policy debate. 

Whether you're a frontier AI developer, a social media platform or a financial or healthcare business deploying AI, access to and governance of data are fundamental questions. 

That means governments are revisiting existing frameworks around privacy, copyright, cybersecurity and competition to determine whether they're fit for an AI-driven economy. Australia's recent decision to reject an AI industry proposal on copyright illustrates how difficult these trade-offs remain. 

Many of these debates aren't entirely new, but AI raises them at a different scale and pace. The challenge for policymakers will be applying existing principles while remaining flexible enough to support innovation. 

Given the speed of change, businesses need to combine long-term strategic thinking with the agility to respond as regulation continues to evolve. 

Q: What will you be focusing on with clients in your first year at Flint? 

I'll be helping clients navigate the intersection of AI, cybersecurity, content regulation and trade. 

That means identifying where engagement will have the greatest impact, whether at a national level or through regional forums such as ASEAN, the World Bank and IMF Annual Meetings, or the World Radiocommunication Conference. 

We'll also be working more closely with governments across the region. Flint's combination of policy, regulatory and geopolitical expertise, together with our network of current and former senior officials, puts us in a strong position to help both businesses and governments navigate an increasingly complex policy environment. 

Q: Looking ahead, what excites you most about leading Flint's APAC tech practice? 

Asia is at the forefront of many of the policy and commercial questions that will shape the next decade – from AI and digital regulation to cybersecurity, trade and geopolitical competition. It's an incredibly dynamic place to be advising clients. 

What excites me most is the opportunity to help clients navigate that complexity while continuing to grow Flint's presence across the region. The firm has built strong foundations in Asia, and we're bringing together expertise across technology, public affairs, regulation, economics and geopolitics in a way that few firms can. 

It's also been clear to me from day one that Flint has a collaborative culture. People bring deep expertise, challenge each other's thinking and genuinely enjoy working together. That's an exciting platform to build on as we continue to grow across APAC.

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