SoftBank plans $50 billion tech investment in Malaysia
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Masayoshi Son picked sites in Sarawak and peninsular Malaysia for AI, data center and other technology projects.
SoftBank Group Chief Executive Masayoshi Son has chosen locations in Malaysia for $50 billion in technology investments, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on October 24, according to Bloomberg's report.
The outlay would accelerate Son's global bet on AI infrastructure, Bloomberg reported. It would also be by far the largest technology commitment tied to Malaysia's push to become an “AI nation” by 2030.
Anwar said Son identified sites in Kuching, the capital of Sarawak state, and in peninsular Malaysia after a video conference between the two in the week of October 19. The investments would focus on artificial intelligence, new technologies, and data centers, Anwar said.
The sum dwarfs earlier pledges by US cloud providers. Google broke ground on a $2 billion data center and cloud region in Selangor in October 2024, according to the company's announcement, and Microsoft said in May 2024 it would invest $2.2 billion over four years in cloud and AI infrastructure and skills in its announcement. Malaysia recorded 385.7 billion ringgit ($94 billion) in data center-related investments between 2021 and the first half of 2026, according to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority.
Anwar launched AI Malaysia Berhad, a national AI body under the Ministry of Digital, on July 28, alongside the National AI Action Plan 2026–2030 and a Malaysia AI Safety Institute, the ministry said in a press release. The government is also drafting an AI Governance Bill, which it aims to complete by the end of the year.