TRADE TENSIONS BENEFITING MALAYSIA
On another front, continuing trade tensions between the United States and China have presented Malaysian companies with a window of opportunity.
With the segmentation of the semiconductor industry, customers are “more open” to other solutions from “more neutral countries” like Malaysia, said Mr Fong Swee Kiang, founder and CEO of Malaysian start-up Skyechip.
The company was set up four years ago and specialises in providing IP and IC solutions for AI.
It currently has 300 designers and more than 30 patents, and is slated for possible listing on Bursa Malaysia – the country’s stock exchange – next year.
“In the past, let’s say for silicon IP, it (was) dominated by companies like Psygnosis, Cadence, Rambus and so on,” Mr Fong pointed out.
That situation has since changed.
“I think that earned us the window to offer our IP solutions,” he added.
All this is music to the ears of Malaysia’s Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli, who wants to inspire more local tech champions.
“Eventually IC design companies want to be listed. The proximity to Klang Valley … is important. There is also the proximity to the talent pipeline. Most of the country’s top education institutions are in Klang Valley,” he told CNA.
“I’m hoping that the next five-year plan (is) where people go directly to the industry, they get certified. Eventually, they can go all the way to a degree and that, in a way, de-bottleneck the whole process,” he added.
