Malaysia has secured a big agreement with British chip designer Arm Holdings, gaining access to innovative semiconductor technology as the country attempts to strengthen its position in the international supply chain. The 10-year, $250 million agreement will grant Malaysia intellectual property rights to seven compute subsystems as well as access to the Arm Flexible Access program. The agreement is planned to expand Malaysia’s semiconductor industry beyond midstream and downstream activities, allowing it to create high-value chip designs.
PM Anwar Ibrahim stated that Arm will open its first Southeast Asian office in Malaysia’s capital. The company will also train 10,000 engineers and help the local semiconductor industry design innovative chips. Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli emphasised that Malaysia must shift its focus from low-value semiconductor operations to upstream activities like intellectual property creation.
Within the next five years, the government intends to create a semiconductor designed in Malaysia. Rafizi stated that each compute subsystem license might earn $30 billion in annual profits if effectively commercialised. According to some observers, the move is related to tensions between the US and China, although Rafizi denied this.
