Huawei Cloud plans to train 30,000 Malaysians in AI Skills

Malaysia is advancing AI with a focus on ethics, sustainability, and skills, aiming to train 30,000 people and support 200 local partners in three years.

The Huawei Cloud AI Ecosystem Summit APAC 2025 highlighted how cloud and AI technologies are being used to drive growth in Malaysia and across ASEAN, with healthcare and manufacturing among the sectors set to benefit.

Malaysia's Minister of Digital, Gobind Singh Deo, told attendees that the country's AI strategy is built on ethics and sustainability, with national progress tied closely to the region's development.

"Our National AI Office (NAIO) has been speeding up the completion of the AI Technology Action Plan 2026–2030 and relevant regulatory frameworks to ensure the adoption of AI technology in key sectors in the country are ethical, sustainable and of high value," he said.

He added that Malaysia's Digital Economy Blueprint, supported by Malaysia Digital (MD) and partnerships with companies such as Huawei, is a core driver. Public and private sector cooperation, he said, is central to building the country's digital economy.

Huawei Malaysia CEO Simon Sun spoke about building local skills through the Huawei Malaysia AI Talent Program, which aims to train 30,000 people over the next three years, including students, government officials, and industry professionals.

He said the company also plans to support 200 local AI partners through knowledge sharing, solution collaborations, and links with global AI firms. Huawei Cloud, he added, will work to encourage AI investments in Malaysia and support local innovation through partnerships and the creation of new AI companies.

These plans are part of the wider Huawei Cloud APAC AI Ecosystem Initiative, announced by Sun in the presence of Malaysian Prime Minister Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the first day of the ASEAN AI Summit 2025. The Prime Minister's attendance signaled government support for AI development in Malaysia and the region.

Huawei Cloud Marketing Vice President Aka Dai said cloud and AI are now key drivers of innovation and growth, and ASEAN is moving toward becoming an "AI region."

"Huawei has invested in ASEAN for 26 years, and Huawei Cloud has served the region for seven years. We will ramp up local investments as well as provide diverse, agile, and inclusive cloud and AI technologies to help boost regional economic growth, enhance competitiveness, and improve social well-being," Dai said.

Huawei Cloud supports enterprises in three main ways: a global network of 34 Regions and 101 availability zones, including five Regions and 17 availability zones in ASEAN; an open model ecosystem with more than 160 open-source models; and its Pangu Models, which are used to create AI solutions for different industries.

The APAC summit, held on the second day of the ASEAN AI Summit, drew about 300 industry delegates. Huawei Cloud Enterprise Intelligence CTO Li Yin shared how the company has applied AI in more than 30 industries and 500 scenarios worldwide.

Using the Pangu foundational model, the ModelArts AI toolchain, and established engineering methods, Huawei Cloud helps organizations use their own data to create custom AI models. Li said future investment will focus on a secure and trustworthy AI foundation, industry-focused applications such as enterprise AI assistants and AI video tools, and expanding the partner ecosystem.