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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has launched its first locally designed and developed edge AI processor.

Introduced by local semiconductor designer SkyeChip Sdn Bhd, the edge AI processor is dubbed as the MARS1000.

SkyeChip chief executive officer Fong Swee Kiang said MARS1000 is the first smart IoT chip that is built on a 7-nanometer process technology.

“The chip provides cost-effective, smart, efficient and artificial intelligence (AI)-ready solutions. With the MARS1000, Malaysia industrial players will now have a homegrown chip that can be used to power smart agriculture, Industrial 4.0, smart cities, smart traffic and safe cities.

“At the same time, the chip will enable the building of AI learning systems that will continue to propel Malaysian students to be AI-literate and be leading AI-knowledge workers,” he said during the Malaysia Semiconductor Industry Association (MSIA) Merdeka Dinner 2025 yesterday.

Fong added that with the MARS1000 chips, he hopes it will build an ecosystem, not only patents, intellectual property, and silicon products but an industry that can flourish in the AI supercycle that has just started.

Purpose-built for edge workloads, the MARS1000 enables autonomous robotics, intelligent video analytics, smart cities, industrial automation, and generative AI — positioning Malaysian innovation on the global AI stage.

Moreover, the event also saw the introduction of EdgeMind, a locally developed Edge AI system by Elliance Sdn Bhd.

The company said the Edge AI system is designed to democratise AI adoption across industry, agriculture, and education.

“By enabling faster, easier, and more cost-effective development of AI solutions, EdgeMind is poised to transform how AI technologies are deployed in these sectors. This advancement is expected to not only drive significant improvements in operational efficiency and effectiveness but also contribute to the growth of Malaysia’s AI talent pool,” it said.

Elliance is a Malaysia-based company that specialises in Industry 4.0 consultancy and solutions for manufacturing and agricultural industries.

Back in November 2024, a memorandum of understanding was inked between Elliance, Skyechip, Kaltech and Estek Automation. The partnership had marked these companies’ strategic partnership to design and produce Malaysia’s first edge AI system.

MSIA president Datuk Seri Wong Siew Hai said Malaysia’s semiconductor and electrical and electronics exports grew 15.7% in the first half of 2025, outpacing overall export growth of 3.8%.

He noted the country is making progress in realising its vision as a global hub for IC design to advanced packaging, equipment innovation to smart manufacturing and talent development.

“Malaysia now has two World Economic Forum recognised Lighthouse Factories: SanDisk Storage Malaysia, the first Advanced 4IR and Sustainability Lighthouse in Asia, and this year Agilent Technologies is recognised for global leadership in digital transformation.

“Homegrown companies are also excelling. SkyeChip has filed over 90 patents in five years and delivered multi-generation silicon IP for AI and high-performance computing. Elliance designed an Edge AI system enabling AI deployment without deep coding. Swiftbridge developed South-East Asia’s highest frequency test cable at 125GHz and is progressing on 145GHz to support 6G testing,” he said during his speech yesterday.

Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2025/08/25/malaysia-launches-first-local-edge-ai-processor-mars1000