KUALA LUMPUR: Microsoft will invest US$2.2bil (RM10.5bil) in the country’s cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) over the next four years, says its chairman and chief executive officer Satya Nadella.
The investment includes building digital infrastructure, creating AI skilling opportunities, establishing a national AI Centre of Excellence and enhancing the nation’s cybersecurity capabilities.
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The investment demonstrates Microsoft’s commitment to developing Malaysia as a hub for cloud computing and related advanced technologies, including generative AI.
“We want to make sure that we have world-class infrastructure right here in the country so that every organisation, software developers and startups can use it, to not only build for this country but for the world and the region,” he said during the keynote address at Microsoft Build AI Day here yesterday, Bernama reported.
Satya noted that the investment will enable Microsoft to meet the growing demand for cloud computing services in Malaysia and allow the country to capitalise on the significant economic and productivity opportunities presented by the latest AI technology.
“Our investments in digital infrastructure and skilling will help Malaysian businesses, communities and developers apply the latest technology to drive inclusive economic growth and innovation across the country,” he said.
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According to research by Kearney, AI could contribute nearly US$1 trillion (RM4.77 trillion) to South-East Asia’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, with Malaysia poised to capture US$115bil of this amount.
Satya noted that in the region, more than 14% incremental GDP growth is projected through AI technology across all sectors such as the healthcare, education, retail and energy sectors.
“We ground ourselves in our mission to empower every person and organisation in Malaysia to be able to achieve more. To that end, we are building a complete cloud infrastructure.
“As a platform company, we are very focused on bringing world-class platforms to empower every developer, companies to build more technology,” he said.
Microsoft will also continue to help foster the growth of Malaysia’s developer community through new initiatives such as AI Odyssey, which is expected to help 2,000 Malaysian developers become AI subject matter experts by learning new skills and earning Microsoft credentials.
Malaysia is a rapidly growing market on GitHub, the Microsoft-owned software development, collaboration and innovation platform with almost 680,000 of the nation’s developers using GitHub in 2023, representing 28% year-on-year growth, Satya added.
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Meanwhile, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the additional US$2.2bil investment by Microsoft in the country over the next four years is the largest single investment by the company in its 32 years in Malaysia.
He said the investment will greatly support the government’s focus on developing AI capacity in the country.
“Malaysia welcomes this investment decision which proves their confidence in the country’s strong economic base, clear and focused policies, in addition to investor friendliness and political stability,” he said in a Facebook post.
The Prime Minister said he and Satya attended the National AI Leadership Forum after receiving a courtesy visit from the Microsoft chairman and CEO as well as his delegation in Putrajaya yesterday.
“We had a dialogue regarding matters that touched on technology, namely AI and the government’s plans to prepare the country for change in this area.
“Hopefully, this collaboration between Malaysia and Microsoft can bring significant benefits to the country and the people as a whole,” he said.
