How Malaysia’s data centres became the engine powering China’s AI ambitions

Malaysia
Written By Aldo Fenalosa

The Star | 8 April 2025

Just off a narrow highway in rural Malaysia, a vast cluster of buildings flanked by rows of solar panels towers above the surrounding palm plantations.

The 275-acre (111-hectare) site, built by local conglomerate YTL Corporation, is filled with data centres to service an explosion in demand for processing power in the South-East Asian nation.

Malaysia is rapidly emerging as a key front in a global computing arms race, as Western and Chinese technology giants rush to build data centres to power their evolving artificial intelligence models.

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