Plug and Play has announced plans to launch a new office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to support the Future Malaysia Programme by sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad.
Its primary responsibility will be to accelerate the growth of the innovation ecosystem in the country by working with leading corporations and top high-potential startups across the globe through its accelerator programme, which will focus on areas related to Digital Society & Technology Hub, Sustainability & Climate Resilience, and Food Security & Agriculture.
These areas are carefully curated to fulfill Malaysia’s agenda, build capabilities for the economy, and future-proof several industries present in the country.
The Future Malaysia Programme aims to transform technologies via stakeholder involvement that benefits participating startups, corporations, investors, and governments who look to invest and scale emerging technologies in the country.
Plug and Play will support this through its accelerator programmes, a platform that leverages its impact through international ties, promoting the attraction and development of tech talent, investments, and more. Startups of all stages from around the globe will be considered to participate and work with the relevant stakeholders to pilot, scale, and commercialise solutions in Malaysia in line with the programme themes.
Dato’ Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir, Managing Director of Khazanah Nasional Berhad said, “We are pleased to collaborate with Plug and Play to establish a Malaysia-based corporate innovation platform that enables Malaysian corporates to discover and match innovative technology to their business needs.
“This initiative is in line with our Advancing Malaysia strategy and commitment to delivering sustainable economic and societal benefits for the nation.
As corporate innovation is vital for corporates to remain at the forefront of technology trends, we will leverage this platform to create more opportunities for both local and international startups to collaborate with leading Malaysian corporates, pooling resources and expertise to solve real business and innovation challenges and drive potential value creation for both parties.
“By announcing this collaboration alongside prominent Malaysian corporates, we hope to crowd in more Malaysian corporates to participate in this programme as an all-of-Malaysia approach will be crucial to boosting the local startup ecosystem in Malaysia.”
The programme also looks to partner with Malaysia’s leading conglomerates to leverage their domain and vertical expertise to pilot, commercialise and invest into emerging technology companies both locally and from across the globe looking to enter and add value to Malaysia. Joining Khazanah Nasional and Plug and Play would be the likes of communications conglomerate CelcomDigi, and the world’s largest producer of certified sustainable palm oil, Sime Darby Plantation, with more partners set to come onboard in the coming months.
Corporations who join the programme will also be able to explore and match technology and ideas with their innovation needs. The programme also looks to incubate corporate best practices and early-stage investment capabilities for participating corporations.
The Future Malaysia Programme is set to launch in the latter half of 2023, and recruitment is underway for startups and additional new corporate partners.
