The bilateral trade between the UK and Malaysia is $5.9 billion, with the fastest-growing industries being digital, technology, and cyber.
The UK-Malaysia Digital Innovation Programme Demo Day kicked off in Sunway City, Kuala Lumpur, today with 10 UK net zero start-ups pitching their technologies for up to US$1 million in investment and entry into the Sunway iLabs’ Net Zero Lab. The initiative also saw UK tech ecosystem connecting and exploring opportunities with Malaysian government bodies and venture capital funds.
Deputy British High Commissioner David Wallace, Minister of Economy YB Rafizi Ramli, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific Natalie Black, and Group Chief Executive Officer of Digital and Strategic Investments of Sunway Group Evan Cheah all attended the event.
The Sunway Group’s innovation arm, Sunway Innovation Labs (Sunway iLabs), MyDigital Corporation, and the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation are partners in the programme, which is run by IoT Tribe. In order to digitalize analogue systems, optimise energy use through artificial intelligence, and enhance food security, Malaysian corporations and UK start-ups will collaborate on the programme to pilot and scale their innovative solutions.
The initiative will also assist Malaysia in realising its digital goals, which are outlined in the MyDigital Blueprint and the 4IR policy, in order to achieve a fully digitalized economy.
The first step in creating an innovative culture is realising that innovation is simply asking, “How can I make this better?” in response to a daily issue, according to YB Rafizi Ramli, Minister of Economy.
All the best creations in the world start with that simple question. And initiatives such as the UK-Malaysia Digital Innovation Programme could help shape a society in which people are comfortable asking that question and seeing themselves as creators rather than passive consumers. This is one step forward in mainstreaming the culture of innovation.
The bilateral trade between the UK and Malaysia is $5.9 billion, with the fastest-growing industries being digital, technology, and cyber. According to David Wallace, the Deputy British High Commissioner to Malaysia. The Programme acts as a catalyst for business partnerships and investments by bringing together leading Malaysian corporations and UK digital tech businesses, as well as aggregating complementary strengths and resources.
Natalie Black, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific, has brought 10 UK Net Zero tech businesses to Malaysia for the UK-Malaysia Digital Innovation Programme Demo Day. This event marks the final stretch of UK-Southeast Asia Tech Week and an exciting new chapter for collaboration between the UK and Malaysian tech ecosystem. Malaysia is a top destination for cutting-edge tech companies looking to expand and diversify their reach within the region.
Matt van Leeuwen, Chief Innovation Officer of Sunway Group and Director of Sunway iLabs, is committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions in line with the Malaysian government’s commitment to being carbon neutral by 2050.
Sunway is looking to partner with global startups to co-create solutions that can be tested and validated in their ecosystem, with the ultimate objective of scaling them in the Malaysian and wider Southeast Asian markets. To achieve this, Sunway has launched the Net Zero Lab, a cross-border investment programme, to source and accelerate climate tech innovations that have a positive and sustainable impact on communities and the planet.
Sunway iLabs is committed to supporting Malaysia’s green transition through the Net Zero Labs and the UK-Malaysia Digital Innovation Programme. This programme is supported by Khazanah, the Japanese External Trade Organization Kuala Lumpur (JETRO KL), Deep Tech Labs, and the Department for Business and Trade. Sunway hopes to instigate some of the solutions they see coming out of the UK to help them achieve their goals by 2050.
The wider UK-Southeast Asia Tech Week, which takes place in Jakarta, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur, includes the UK-Malaysia Digital Innovation Programme.
Innovative UK tech firms as well as business and government representatives from the region were all present during the week’s events. Leading UK start-ups Agave Networks, Filia, Inferrix, Informed Solutions, Permia Sensing, ProtectBox, Singular Intelligence, Voltvision, Voyage Control, and Wootzano have been shortlisted to exhibit their disruptive technologies in Malaysia.
More than 100 participants from the Malaysian tech ecosystem attended the event. The event drew senior representatives from Sunway Group in addition to other Malaysian businesses, financiers, and government organisations like MyDigital Corporation and MDEC. As both nations advance together towards a net zero future, the event offered a crucial chance for exchange between the UK and Malaysia.