AWS launches Semarak AI Malaysia, putting Amazon Quick tool to 445,000 government officers
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Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched Semarak AI Malaysia, a national program to give government officers, students, software companies, and communities AI tools and skills to build their own solutions.
In a statement on Wednesday, AWS said the launch was made at AWS Cloud and AI Day Kuala Lumpur. The program has three pillars: AI Negara for the public sector, AI Ekonomi for businesses and AI Rakyat for communities.
AWS will focus on the step after initial AI adoption, equipping Malaysians to build with AI themselves.
Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said the program builds on AWS’ MYR29.2 billion ($7.21 billion) commitment to Malaysia. The program starts with civil servants and students, then software companies that can build AI solutions for Malaysian businesses and the region.
Under AI Negara, GovTech Malaysia in the Ministry of Digital is launching GovHub, powered by AWS’s Kiro coding tool, through the Digital Nexus AI-as-a-Service platform. A phase-one pilot with 500 developers starts in 2026, with a goal of 4,000 developers by 2028. AWS is also investing to put its Amazon Quick work assistant in the hands of up to 445,000 government officers through the same platform, for tasks such as analyzing procurement data and synthesizing policy research.
Under AI Ekonomi, AWS says cloud and AI workloads for software companies in Malaysia building on AWS grew by about 30 percent in 2024 and 2025. AWS also runs the Sarawak SaaS Accelerator with the Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation, which graduated more than 20 software companies in its pilot cohort.
AWS is also working with GD XCHANGE, the solutions arm of logistics provider GDEX, and distributor VSTECS to offer AI tools to small businesses. Eligible firms receive six months of free access to Quick and Kiro after an AI readiness assessment, with a goal of onboarding 10,000 small businesses by 2028.
Under AI Rakyat, AWS is building on a collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education’s polytechnic and community college department. More than 3,000 students and lecturers took part in the POLYCC Agentic AI League 2026, which the company says set a national record for participation in an agentic AI competition. AWS has also adopted Sekolah Kebangsaan Datuk Keramat in Kuala Lumpur under the government’s Sekolah Angkat MADANI program. The program can upgrade the school’s digital and science facilities and train teachers.
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