KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 23 — Google has applauded Malaysia’s approach to building artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Google vice-president of government affairs and public policy Karan Bhatia said in the recent Apec Summit in Peru that the approach to building such infrastructure was the reason Google decided to invest US$2 billion (RM9.4 billion) in a data centre in Malaysia.
In May 2024, Google announced the US$2 billion investment, including the development of its first data centre in the country and a Google Cloud region, to meet the growing demand for cloud services locally and around the world, as well as AI literacy programmes for students and educators.
Google’s investment is expected to generate over US$3.2 billion in economic impact and create 26,500 jobs by 2030.
Meanwhile, Microsoft vice-president of data and AI Zia Mansoor praised Malaysia’s efforts with the National Artificial Intelligence Roadmap that has been created.
“It’s very comprehensive. It’s looking at the AI infrastructure. It’s looking at skilling,” he said at the Apec CEO Summit Peru 2024 held recently.
He added that the roadmap includes establishing an AI Centre of Excellence within the government to integrate AI technology into its operations.
“These are crucial steps, in my view,” he said.
On November 15, Anwar held a discussion with Google in the capital of Peru, focusing on data centres and AI.
He said that appropriate attention needed to be given to strengthening the AI and data centre ecosystem, especially in terms of the relevant rules and regulations to prevent data leakage and exploitation with malicious intent.
Anwar also said Malaysia stands ready to align its policies to match new demands and ever-evolving industries in a multi-pronged approach to continuously attract high-value investments.
— Bernama
