Google Advances Its Cloud-Based Policy, Invests $2B in Malaysia to Move Up The Global Chain

By Moon Harper

May 31, 2024 05:33 AM EDT

Google Headquarter — (Photo : Unsplash/alban )

Google on Thursday announced a $2 billion investment in Malaysia, with some of the money being used to construct its initial data center and cloud region in the country, responding to increasing demand for AI and cloud services.

Google Promoting Its Cloud First Policy in Malaysia

Ruth Porat, president, CFO, and CIO at Alphabet and Google, stated that the investment builds upon their partnership with the Government of Malaysia to promote its Cloud First Policy and implement top-tier cybersecurity standards. She further mentioned that this investment represents Google's most significant contribution to Malaysia over its 13 years of operation.

Google's Investment in Data Centers

While the data center will support Google's digital services like Search, Maps, and Workspace, the cloud region will offer services to both public and private sector entities.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim praised Google's investment as a vote of confidence in Malaysia's governance and economy. The company is expected to contribute $3.2 billion to the economy and create 26,500 jobs by 2030. These investments come at an opportune time for Anwar, as he aims to strengthen his position amidst a formidable Islamic opposition.

Google also stated that the new hubs will be established at a business park in central Malaysia, in Selangor state, to address the increasing demand among Malaysian students and educators for cloud services and AI literacy programs.

Malaysia is set to join eleven other nations as a host to a Google data center. This Malaysian hub of Google Cloud is designed to serve a wide range of entities, including large corporations, startups, and government agencies, and willintegrate into Google's already expansive network of 40 regions and 121 zones across the globe.

Tech Industry's Investments to Keep Up with AI Demand

This announcement follows Microsoft's earlier this month declaration of its plan to invest $2.2 billion in Malaysia for the development of new cloud and AI infrastructure, along with investments in Indonesia and Thailand earlier this year.

Google and Microsoft, among other tech giants, have also committed billions of dollars to Southeast Asia to seize the growing demand for AI and cloud computing services.

Google Wants to Move Up The Global Chain

The surge in AI adoption has driven an increase in demand for cloud computing services and data centers, essential in providing the necessary infrastructure for storing data and running applications or services.

YB Senator Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Aziz, the minister of investment, trade, and industry, stated in a press release that Google's $2 billion investment in Malaysia will notably propel the digital aspirations outlined in the New Industrial Master Plan 2030. The minister also emphasized that Google's investments will empower manufacturing and service-based industries to utilize AI and other advanced technologies to move up the global chain.

Anwar met with Porat and other business leaders during his visits to the US last year.