# Malaysia's AI growth must be green, intelligent and focused on real-world applications – Fahmi

- Link: https://www.thailand-business-news.com/pr-news/malaysias-ai-growth-must-be-green-intelligent-and-focused-on-real-world-applications-fahmi
- Published: 2026-09-11T19:18:00+07:00
- Author: PR Newswire

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Sept. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Malaysia must turn its growing
digital infrastructure and computing capacity into artificial intelligence (AI) 
capabilities that deliver real-world value across the economy, while ensuring that
its AI growth remains responsible and sustainable, said Minister of Communications
Dato’ Seri Fahmi Fadzil.

 [⌊Minister of Communications, YB Dato’ Seri Fahmi Fadzil (centre) officiating the inaugural WAIC CONNECT Malaysia 2026, with him are (L to R), Honorary President of the Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce & President of the Malaysia-China Friendship Association, YBhg. Dato’ Abdul Majid Ahmad Khan; Managing Director of MCMC, Abdul Karim Fakir Ali; Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to Malaysia, H.E. Ouyang Yujing; President of Huawei APAC, Terry He; President, Marketing & Solution Sales Dept of Huawei APAC, Tao Jing; and CEO of Huawei Malaysia, Simon Sun.⌉](https://mmx.prnasia.com/media/MS1986315/20260911022340EDT_image_1.jpg?id=OA2942921&p=medium600)

Minister of Communications, YB Dato’ Seri Fahmi Fadzil (centre) officiating the 
inaugural WAIC CONNECT Malaysia 2026, with him are (L to R), Honorary President 
of the Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce & President of the Malaysia-China Friendship
Association, YBhg. Dato’ Abdul Majid Ahmad Khan; Managing Director of MCMC, Abdul
Karim Fakir Ali; Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Malaysia, H.E. 
Ouyang Yujing; President of Huawei APAC, Terry He; President, Marketing & Solution
Sales Dept of Huawei APAC, Tao Jing; and CEO of Huawei Malaysia, Simon Sun.

"The distinction we must now make is between having digital infrastructure and being
a place where AI is developed, deployed and applied. That means using AI to make
our semiconductor and electronics industries more productive, strengthen advanced
manufacturing and logistics, improve supply chains, transform healthcare, support
agriculture and deliver better public services," he said in his keynote address 
at the inaugural WAIC CONNECT Malaysia 2026.

"Our progress should not be measured simply by computing capacity but by the economic
value and opportunities that we create from it. This is the ambition behind the 
Government’s National AI Action Plan 2026-2030, or AI Nation 2030. We are targeting
an additional 0.8 to 1.2 percentage points of annual GDP growth, equivalent to roughly
RM13 billion to RM20 billion a year. We also aim to create 300,000 to 500,000 new
AI-related jobs," he added.

He hoped the conference would help highlight areas that require greater attention
as AI adoption accelerates, including ensuring that growth in AI creates opportunities
for young people and supports job growth.

He also highlighted Huawei Technologies (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd’s (Huawei Malaysia) support
for the event and welcomed Huawei’s goal of nurturing 30,000 Malaysian AI talents
and developing 200 local AI partners over the next three years through engagements,
knowledge transfer, and cloud and AI collaborations.

Looking beyond Malaysia’s AI development, China’s rapid advances in intelligent 
technologies offer another perspective on how AI is being translated into practical
applications at scale.

"In the first half of this year, China exported over 10,000 smart bionic robots 
to more than 90 countries and regions. China’s intelligent manufacturing is bringing
unprecedented convenience and efficiency to a growing number of countries worldwide,"
said His Excellency Ouyang Yujing, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary 
of the People’s Republic of China to Malaysia in his speech.

"As modern Chinese tech firms invest heavily in Malaysia’s AI sector and data centre
infrastructure, and as the universities from both countries speed up cooperative
innovation in cutting-edge fields like AI and advanced engineering, AI is rapidly
emerging as the dynamic new growth engine for China-Malaysia cooperation," he said.

President of Huawei Asia Pacific Region (Huawei APAC), Terry He said the Asia Pacific
has a strategic role in shaping the intelligent future, with the region’s diversity
of languages, cultures, industries and development needs presenting an opportunity
to develop AI that is better suited to local contexts.

"Malaysia, within APAC, holds a unique position. Geographically, it sits at the 
crossroads of East and West, connected by world-class submarine cables. In terms
of computing power, Johor has become one of the fastest-growing AI data centre hubs
in the world. On energy, Malaysia offers competitive and increasingly green power,
partnering with major leaders generating their own energy for AI campuses. Malaysia
is on track to host around two-thirds of ASEAN’s data centre capacity by 2035. With
these advantages, we believe Malaysia is well positioned to be not only an infrastructure
leader, but also a regional AI hub, empowering AI development across the region,"
he said.

"Looking ahead, Huawei will continue to contribute in three key areas. First, we
will strengthen the foundation for intelligence. Together with local partners, we
will build secure, resilient, and green digital infrastructure across connectivity,
computing, cloud, storage, and green energy. Second, we will accelerate AI adoption
across industries by bringing AI into key sectors including telecommunications, 
public services, finance, healthcare, education, and SMEs to improve productivity
and create tangible value for society. Third, we will build an open and trusted 
innovation ecosystem. We will connect global capabilities with local innovation,
support Malaysian partners, developers, and startups, and further advance AI talent,
responsible AI, cybersecurity, and secure digital infrastructure—helping take "Made
by Malaysia" AI solutions to ASEAN and the world," he emphasised.

Also present were Kang Kai, Chief Commercial Official of Shanghai DLG WAIC Gravitational
Co Ltd; Simon Sun, Chief Executive Officer of Huawei Technologies (Malaysia) Sdn
Bhd (Huawei Malaysia); Yang Berbahagia Dato’ Abdul Majid Ahmad Khan, Honorary President
of the Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce and President of Malaysia-China Friendship
Association and Abdul Karim Fakir Ali, Managing Director of the Malaysian Communications
and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

WAIC Connect Malaysia 2026 is an international extension of China’s flagship AI 
industry event, the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC). Held from September
7 to 8 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, the event brought together AI companies,
enterprises and ecosystem partners from China, Malaysia and other ASEAN markets 
under the theme "Innovating for a Green and Intelligent Malaysia".

Participants at the event included representatives from the Malaysian Communications
and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC),
Huawei APAC, Huawei Malaysia, Chinese AI enterprises along with more than 80 ecosystem
partners and 1,000 industry experts from across the Asia-Pacific region.

The two-day conference comprised a main keynote conference, forums, an offsite exchange–
WAIC City Walk – and an exhibition featuring more than 40 showcases.

Malaysia is now moving from building the foundations for AI to putting those capabilities
into practice across industries, government and society. Against this backdrop, 
WAIC Connect Malaysia provides a platform for Malaysia, China and the wider ASEAN
region to share experience, build partnerships and accelerate the practical adoption
and development of AI.

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  |  This article was produced by Cision PR Newswire, our trusted news partner. The views expressed and the content presented here are solely those of the author and may not fully reflect the opinions of Thailand Business News. |

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