KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is seeking to position itself as a “Digital Tiger of Asia”, where technology empowers every citizen and every industry.
That ambition took a significant step forward today with the announcement of a strategic partnership between Aisling Professional Development, the talent solutions arm of Aisling Group Malaysia, and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras Global Research Foundation (IITM Global), a wholly owned entity of the Indian Institute of Technology Madras.
Fabian Bigar, secretary-general of the Digital Ministry, said the collaboration is designed to build a localised, high-tech ecosystem anchored in world-class research, deep-tech entrepreneurship and sovereign digital technology.
Also present at the launch were B.N. Reddy, High Commissioner of India to Malaysia; Akhil Gupta, board director of Aisling Group; and Thirumalai Madhavnarayan, chief executive officer of IITM Global.
“Our ambition is to position Malaysia as a Digital Tiger of Asia. To achieve this, we recognise that our most critical asset is our people,” Fabian said.
“The digital economy is, first and foremost, a human economy. It is built not on silicon and servers, but on the ingenuity, skills and creativity of our talent.
“Therefore, developing a future-ready workforce equipped with high-impact digital skills is the central pillar of our national digital strategy.”
The partnership moves Malaysia beyond traditional technology imports developed and owned by foreign companies.
Its core focus is on enhancing Malaysia’s sovereign capability, ensuring the nation owns the critical skills and intellectual property required to lead in the age of artificial intelligence.
Strategically aligned with the 13th Malaysia Plan and the Malaysia Digital Action Plan 2030, the collaboration supports national efforts to strengthen the local artificial intelligence talent ecosystem.
By equipping professionals with high-value skill sets, the partnership will contribute towards Malaysia’s target of creating between 300,000 and 500,000 new jobs in the digital technology ecosystem by 2030.
Fabian said the alliance is timely and vital, as it represents a deliberate shift from Malaysia being a passive consumer of technology to becoming an active creator, owner and innovator of digital solutions.
“It signifies a move towards building sovereign digital technology and strengthening our domestic digital capabilities,” he said.
Structured around four core pillars of IITM Global – scale-ups, research and consultancy, intellectual property and technology transfer, and high-end skilling and academic programmes – the partnership creates a seamless pipeline from academic research to global market commercialisation.
These pillars include:
• Advanced education and upskilling: Delivery of future-ready technology stacks through IITM Global-certified professional programmes in areas such as artificial intelligence, data science, cybersecurity and blockchain, including access to elite academic programmes in frontier fields such as robotics and quantum systems.
• Research and innovation centres of excellence: The establishment of co-centres of excellence in collaboration with existing centres at IIT Madras to generate Malaysian intellectual property. Focus areas include artificial intelligence for governance, digital health solutions for remote communities, and geospatial intelligence for land and flood management, while integrating local SMEs and researchers into global research and development networks.
• Deep-tech start-up development: Leveraging IIT Madras’ start-up model, which has produced more than 500 start-ups, to nurture a new generation of Malaysian technology entrepreneurs and attract international venture capital.
• Intellectual property commercialisation: Ensuring that innovations developed in laboratories are successfully brought to global markets, positioning Malaysia as a regional hub for digital innovation.
The introduction of IITM Global-certified programmes into the local ecosystem marks a significant step towards long-term digital self-sufficiency.
Through this partnership, Aisling Group and IITM Global aim not only to address immediate talent gaps but also to contribute meaningfully to Malaysia’s emergence as a regional deep-tech hub.
