KUALA LUMPUR: The government intends to implement a comprehensive approach involving all ministries and agencies to help the semiconductor sector develop more local technology and to strengthen cooperation with other countries, said Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong.
He said that cooperation between the capital market or financial sector and the technology industry also needs to be strengthened to produce more local companies with their own technology, especially in this sector.
“The semiconductor sector is extremely important because phones, watches, electric vehicles and artificial intelligence (AI) all require semiconductor technology,” he told Bernama after delivering a speech at the launch of the Selangor AI and Semiconductor Summit 2026 here today.
Liew said that the effort was in line with the direction of the country’s industrial development, as outlined in the National Semiconductor Strategy, launched about two and a half years ago, and the New Industrial Master Plan 2030, introduced three years ago.
He said Malaysia now needs to shift from the “Made in Malaysia” approach to “Made by Malaysia” to enable more local companies to develop and own their own technology.
Separately, in his speech, he said the government aims to adopt a whole-of-government approach to strengthen the semiconductor sector, describing it as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a Malaysian economy comparable to South Korea’s in the decades to come.
“The world is a world in which there are geopolitical conflicts, and we must ensure that Malaysian technology is trusted, and Malaysian technology as well as the ecosystem is a secure place and a trusted partner.
“This is an opportunity for all of us, and I would like to see greater collaboration across industries, as AI cuts across industries and sectors. We also want to see more collaboration across states and sectors,” he said.