PETALING JAYA: Malaysia lacks a clear strategy to harness artificial intelligence to transform its economy and improve government service delivery, former Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan said today.
Shahril said the 2027 budget allocation for AI adoption lacked sufficient details on how the funding would translate into meaningful outcomes for businesses and the wider economy.
He said, the budget included 100,000 free AI subscriptions for young people next year and RM30 million under an AI empowerment fund managed by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) to help 4,000 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) adopt AI.
However, Shahril questioned whether the funding would bring about meaningful change, noting that the RM30 million allocation worked out to approximately RM7,500 per company.
“I do not know what the specific details are, or precisely how MDEC intends to spend that RM7,500 per company,” he said in the latest episode of the Keluar Sekejap podcast with former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.
Shahril said he was concerned that the AI initiative could follow the pattern of previous grants intended to help businesses digitise their operations, where the impact of the funding was not clearly demonstrated.
“We have the headline figure, but we do not know what is actually being done to help businesses adopt AI,” he said.
Shahril contrasted Malaysia’s approach with Singapore’s efforts to attract companies and talent at the forefront of technological change to establish their operations there.
He cited Anthropic, OpenAI and ElevenLabs as examples of AI companies that had established bases in Singapore, saying the country had positioned itself to attract businesses operating at the forefront of technological development.
“Malaysia, meanwhile, has a presence in the AI supply chain, particularly through data centres and semiconductor packaging and testing operations in Penang and Kulim.
However, Shahril said these activities had yet to generate the same momentum for developing AI applications and capabilities locally.
“What I am trying to say is that we need a real strategy. We need a company, a government or a ministry that genuinely understands what it wants to achieve with AI in Malaysia,” he said.
Shahril said Singapore had a clear answer to what it wanted to achieve in the AI sector, but questioned whether Malaysia’s leaders had the same clarity.
“I am not sure Malaysia does. If we asked any minister, even the prime minister, what Malaysia wants to achieve with AI, I do not think they would have a clear answer,” he said.
He added that Malaysia was benefitting largely from spillover effects, including investments in semiconductor-related industries, capital markets and foreign direct investment.
However, he said the government had yet to articulate a clear strategy for using AI to transform the economy and improve public service delivery.
“When it comes to how AI can revolutionise our economy and improve government service delivery, I do not see a clear strategy,” he said.
“And this budget does not help move us towards that goal.”