Cover Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, launches the KL20 Action Paper with government ministers during the KL20 Summit 2024 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center on April 22, 2024 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (Photo: Getty Images)
Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, launches the KL20 Action Paper with government ministers during the KL20 Summit 2024 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center on April 22, 2024 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (Photo: Getty Images)
1 / 1
The KL20 Summit 2024 outlines Malaysia’s ambitious plans to become a global startup hub by 2030. Prominent entrepreneurs and investors share their opinions on the summit’s potential impact and the future of Malaysia’s startup ecosystem
The Malaysian startup scene received a shot in the arm recently following the conclusion of the KL20 Summit on April 22 and 23. During the event, the Malaysian government outlined its plans to propel the country to the top 20 global startup hubs by 2030 by introducing transformative reforms that attract high-quality global investments while empowering local entrepreneurs to seize international opportunities.
The summit spotlighted Malaysia as a conducive environment for startups in strategic sectors like semiconductors, AI, agritech, cleantech, and Islamic fintech. It aims to position Kuala Lumpur as the startup gateway to Asia, leveraging the country’s pro-business policies, diverse talent pool, and robust economic ties across the region.
This follows the government’s pivot away from its old strategy of chasing local unicorns. It now wants to attract startups from all across the globe to set up shop here, which at the same time will kindle the fire for more high-quality startups—and eventually, more venture capitalists and sovereign wealth funds to invest in the scene.
Above Jackie Tan, head of product at AngelHack from Singapore said he wanted to see local and emerging startups featured at the event
Jackie Tan, head of product at AngelHack from Singapore said he wanted to see local and emerging startups featured at the event
1 / 1
Impression from attendees
Jackie Tan, co-founder and CEO of BorderDollar, a visiting entrepreneur from Singapore who hasn’t been back to Kuala Lumpur since 2020, found the event to be quite exciting overall. “I was impressed by the scale of KL20, which spanned across multiple floors and space. There was the star-studded roster of panellists and speakers as well,” Tan adds.
Notable speakers at the summit include Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, minister of economy Rafizi Ramli, minister of digital Gobind Singh Deo, Nothing CEO Carl Pei and many others.
However, he expressed a desire to see local and emerging startups featured at the event. He noted that there were not a lot of booths for new startups. Despite this, the Founder Stage stood out as a highlight for Tan, with its dynamic atmosphere and enthusiastic audience.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what Malaysia will do next for their startup ecosystem,” Tan says.
Among the exhibitors at KL20 is Adrian Joseph, the co-founder and CEO at Biogenes Technologies, a company that specialises in molecular diagnostics. “I think the plans and initiatives announced at KL20 sound good on paper, but we’ll have to wait and see how these translate into real solutions.
“The government needs to help address some of the challenges facing the startup landscape including bolstering the early-stage investment scene, attract more venture capital funding and solve issues with capital gains taxation and bureaucratic procedures,” he adds.
Joel Neoh, managing director of CirclesDNA says the incentives offer to investors should help spur interest in Malaysia
1 / 2
Investors weigh in
CirclesDNA managing director Joel Neoh said he believed the summit would be a good first step in highlighting Malaysia as a destination for investors. “I think the energy at the summit was great, and it is great to see a focus on investors and partnerships formed with global venture capitals to make it easier to set up offices in Malaysia,” he says.
Also present at the event was Bikesh Lakhmichand, the CEO of 1337 Ventures. He notes that many Malaysian startups showed great interest in understanding the semiconductor space. “As an early-stage investor, it’s fantastic to see new money entering the market. Now, early-stage startups in the country have additional avenues to pitch their ideas, reducing the need to travel overseas for funding,” he adds.
While many of the plans seem promising on paper, Lakhmichand noted that there needs to be greater clarity. Details such as when and how soon the initiatives will be executed must be specified.
“One unexpected yet pleasant surprise was the immense focus on artificial intelligence and the GPU initiative, in particular the KL20 GPU Scheme,” said Lakhmichand, referring to the government’s plan for a rebate scheme that incentivises the use of cloud services and general-purpose computing on graphics processing units (GPUs).
He adds, “This initiative will significantly assist local AI startups by providing them with access to essential AI infrastructure, such as advanced GPU-integrated data centre hardware.”
“I believe that for Malaysia to achieve the goal of becoming one of the top 20 global startup hubs, it will require time and a coordinated effort. To draw an analogy, it is similar to getting a band together, everyone needs to unite and play in harmony in order to deliver a great performance,” adds Neoh.
