Malaysia Accelerates High-Tech Ambitions With Goal Of Producing Homegrown Chips
PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia is aiming to become a producer of its own branded semiconductor chips within the next three years through a strategic collaboration with Arm Holdings as part of efforts to strengthen the country’s high-technology industry.
Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd. Nasir said the move forms part of a major transformation plan for the local semiconductor sector, shifting the country’s focus from assembly and testing activities towards chip design and high-value technology development.
According to him, Malaysia already possesses a solid industrial foundation due to its long involvement in the global semiconductor supply chain, but the country now aims to move further by developing chips designed and produced by local companies.
“We want Malaysia to be recognised not only as a hub for assembly and testing, but also as a country capable of producing its own advanced semiconductor technology.
“Our target is to see ‘Made by Malaysia’ chips produced within three years and successfully enter international markets,” he said after the strategic partnership offer presentation ceremony between the Malaysian government and Arm Holdings today.
Akmal Nasrullah Mohd. Nasir said access to intellectual property, design technologies and local talent development are among the key components needed to ensure Malaysian firms remain globally competitive.
He added that local chip development will focus on strategic sectors such as data centres, server technology, smart automotive systems, industrial automation and artificial intelligence (AI), all of which are experiencing rapid global growth.
According to him, the expansion of Malaysia’s data centre industry is also creating significant opportunities for high-performance chips required by modern digital industries.
The government is also targeting the development of 10 local semiconductor companies capable of generating revenues between RM1 billion and RM4.7 billion in the future.
In addition, he said the government intends to support more than 100 other high-tech companies with the potential to achieve annual revenues of around RM1 billion.
“This is a long-term strategy to build larger and more competitive local companies capable of becoming important players in the global supply chain,” he said.
He added that the strategic partnership with Arm Holdings also includes training programmes for 10,000 Malaysians in integrated circuit (IC) design to ensure the country has sufficient skilled talent to support industry growth.
Meanwhile, four technology tokens including Arm CSS (Compute Subsystem) and Arm Flexible Access were awarded to local firms Great ASIC Technology, SkyeChip Berhad and Oppstar Technology.
Akmal Nasrullah Mohd. Nasir said the initiative is expected to accelerate local chip development while strengthening Malaysia’s position as a regional technology hub.
-wilayah.com.my
