By Yasmin Ramlan
SUBANG JAYA, July 28 — The Advanced Semiconductor Academy of Malaysia (Asem) has partnered with British chip design firm Arm to launch Malaysia’s first Arm-led programme to train 10,000 local engineers over the next decade as part of a national push to develop homegrown talent.
Speaking at the launch, Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari said the state aims to train 1,000 workers annually under the Arm On-Demand training plan, in line with its broader goal of creating 100,000 quality jobs for Selangor youth by the end of the electoral term.
“The collaboration between Arm and Asem will put efforts in motion to elevate Selangor’s role in (advancing) Malaysia as a leader in the design and development of high-end integrated chips (IC) to power the global economy,” he said in his officiating speech at Monash University here today.
The initiative kicked off with its inaugural cohort of 400 engineers, including participants from over 40 universities and 80 tech firms.
Hosted under the Malaysia Semiconductor IC Design Park initiative, the programme focuses on Arm’s advanced chip design ecosystem, including Cortex processors, embedded systems, and System-on-Chip development, with training modules spanning three to six months.
Participants will also gain access to Arm’s platform, featuring tools such as Mali GPUs, Ethos NPUs, and Fast Models, during the first three-day training session from today to Wednesday.
[caption id="attachment_409262" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari poses with attendees of the launch of Arm On-Demand, a training programme borne from a partnership between the Advanced Semiconductor Academy of Malaysia and chip design firm Arm, at Monash University, Subang Jaya, on July 28, 2025. — Picture via FACEBOOK/AMIRUDIN SHARI[/caption]
Later, Amirudin told reporters the IC design training programme helps position Selangor as an important player in the front-end semiconductor field.
He said the state government will allocate RM5 million to RM10 million per year to support the initiative, with an additional backing of RM60 million from the federal government.
“We will work closely with Arm and adopt their full ecosystem, from school to university-level training and beyond,” he said, adding that Selangor is committed to sending local talent abroad for further training.
The training programme is part of Malaysia’s US$250 million agreement with Arm Holdings signed in March, and serves as a key pillar of the National Semiconductor Strategy and Malaysia Silicon Vision to develop homegrown chips within five to 10 years.
Today’s event also saw a deal signed between Arm, Asem and 20 Malaysian universities, symbolising nationwide support for semiconductor research and education, with five more universities in talks to join the initiative.
Among those present were Investment, Trade, and Industry Deputy Minister Liew Chin Tong, state executive councillor for investment, trade, and mobility Ng Sze Han, Asem general manager Angel Low, and Arm’s Asean and Taiwan president and North American sales vice-president CK Tseng.
