Softbank, Grab Announce US$1.85 Bln Initial Seed Capital For Malaysia's AI Infrastructure
By Anas Abu Hassan
SINGAPORE, Nov 9 (Bernama) -- SoftBank Group Corp and Grab Holdings Ltd on Monday announced the signing of joint development agreements in connection with plans for US$1.85 billion (US$1=RM4.06) initial combined seed capital to develop artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in Malaysia with Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (Petros).
In a joint statement, SoftBank and Grab said the combined investment forms part of a multi-year plan to develop AI compute capacity across Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia, with a long-term target of five gigawatts or more.
The proposed initial combined seed capital of US$1.85 billion comprised US$1 billion from SoftBank Group, US$750 million from Grab and US$100 million from Petros.
“The collaboration aimed to establish AI infrastructure in Malaysia to meet the growing demand for computing capacity across Southeast Asia and globally.
“Once fully operational, the facilities are expected to be amongst the largest AI infrastructure of their kind in Asia, providing governments, multinational companies and small businesses with reliable access to advanced computing capabilities,” they said.
According to the statement, the proposed investment will be deployed in stages subject to projects achieving key development and customer contract milestones, and the necessary closing conditions.
Grab co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer Anthony Tan said the company and SoftBank plan to build critical AI infrastructure in Malaysia, where Grab began, for all of Southeast Asia region.
“This infrastructure will allow us to accelerate the development of localised AI solutions for our communities.
“Through this partnership, we can drive faster regional AI development and adoption, bringing its transformative benefits to many millions of people, while contributing to Malaysia's economy through the creation of high-value jobs and AI upskilling,” he said.
The statement said the projects will be developed in close collaboration with Malaysia's Federal Government and the Sarawak government, aligning with the National AI Action Plan 2026–2030 (AI Nation 2030) to position Malaysia as an inclusive and sustainable AI nation, as well as Sarawak's long-term development aspiration under the Post COVID-19 Development Strategy 2030.
The facilities will operate in line with Malaysia’s renewable energy use guidelines, and feature high-efficiency infrastructure designed to reduce water use and reliance on local power grids.
“Beyond AI infrastructure development, the parties will explore other areas of mutual interest, including advanced manufacturing in Malaysia.
“These initiatives are expected to create high-value employment opportunities in engineering, design and technical fields, while supporting the objectives of the National Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Policy and the Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MDEB).
“They will also help accelerate advanced technology adoption, improve productivity and strengthen the capabilities of Malaysia's workforce,” it added.
-- BERNAMA