Malaysia AI Policy / AI news for Malaysia
AI Malaysia Berhad names its first board, chaired by Aireen Omar
Five directors will now oversee the agency meant to deliver AI Nation 2030. Three hold public-sector posts, and the chief executive and remaining seats are still unannounced.
In brief
- Minister of Digital Gobind Singh Deo announced the inaugural Board of Directors of AI Malaysia Berhad on 11 September 2026, with Aireen Omar as chairperson.[1]
- Two directors are senior Ministry of Digital officials and one is the EPF's Chief Digital Technology Officer. The other two come from the private sector.[1]
- The statement says further appointments will follow and names no chief executive. The body was launched on 28 July 2026 to drive the National AI Action Plan 2026-2030.[1][2]
What the ministry announced
AI Malaysia Berhad, the national body created in July to run the country's AI agenda, now has named people formally in charge of it. On 11 September 2026 the Minister of Digital, Gobind Singh Deo, announced its inaugural Board of Directors, with Aireen Omar as chairperson and four directors alongside her.[1]
The statement calls the appointment another milestone in building the institutional foundation for Malaysia's AI agenda. It also says further appointments will be made in due course, so these five names are a starting line-up rather than a complete board. The announcement is also listed on the AI Malaysia website.[1][3]
Who sits on the board
Aireen Omar chairs the board. The ministry describes her as a board member of Tune Protect Group Berhad and an adjunct professor at Universiti Malaysia Sabah, with more than 20 years in business transformation, technology and regional growth.[1]
The four directors are Datuk Fabian Bigar, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Digital; Ma Sivanesan a/l Marimuthu, its Deputy Secretary-General for Digital Development; Muhammad Afhzal bin Abdul Rahman, Chief Digital Technology Officer at the Employees Provident Fund; and Foo Yen Ling Adelene, chairperson of Trendcell Sdn. Bhd. and a director of MyTeksi Sdn. Bhd.[1]
A board weighted towards government
Counted by current role, three of the five seats are held by people in public institutions: the ministry's Secretary-General, one of its Deputy Secretaries-General and a technology chief at the EPF. The other two go to private-sector leaders.[1]
That mix follows from how the body was set up. AI Malaysia is the Ministry of Digital's lead agency, so ministry officials on its board give the ministry a direct line into decisions. In our reading, it also means the board is not independent of the ministry it answers to, which matters for a body that will help shape AI rules.[1][2]
What the board will be overseeing
The mandate is broad. When Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced AI Malaysia on 28 July 2026, the ministry described it as the institutional upgrade of the National AI Office, first set up on 12 December 2024. Its listed jobs include policy coordination, monitoring the National AI Action Plan, governance frameworks and global partnerships.[2]
It is also meant to fulfil the role of the Malaysia AI Safety Institute, covering safety evaluations, testing and red teaming. The same July release said the AI Governance Bill, drafted on a risk-based approach, was targeted for completion by the end of this year. Those workstreams now sit under this board.[2]
What the announcement leaves out
The statement is short on operating detail. It gives no term for any appointment, no committee structure and no timetable for the further appointments it promises. It does not name a chief executive, and it does not say how the directors were selected.[1]
None of the five is described as coming from research, civil society or a technical AI safety role, although the chairperson holds an adjunct academic post. Whether the promised appointments fill that gap is the thing to watch.[1]
Why Malaysia should care
AI Malaysia is the body meant to turn AI Nation 2030 into delivery, and it also carries the Malaysia AI Safety Institute role while the AI Governance Bill is drafted. On the first five names, government is well represented and business has two voices. Researchers and consumer groups have none named so far.
Malaysian SME owners
Two of the directors steering national AI programmes bring startup and business backgrounds.[1]
Practical move: Watch AI Malaysia for programmes aimed at smaller firms, not only large enterprises.
AI vendors and developers
The body coordinating AI governance now has named directors while the AI Governance Bill is drafted.[1][2]
Practical move: Follow the bill through Ministry of Digital releases rather than secondary reports.
Researchers and civil society
No director is described as coming from academic research or civil society.[1]
Practical move: Put views to the ministry before the further appointments are made.
What Malaysians can do now
- Read the ministry's statement before quoting board roles: its short biographies are the only official description of each director so far.
- If your company builds or deploys AI, sort your use cases by risk now, because the AI Governance Bill is being drafted on a risk-based approach.
- Check ai.gov.my for the further board appointments and any announcement of a chief executive.
What we still do not know
What we still do not know
- How long each appointment runs and how the directors were selected.
- Who will lead AI Malaysia as chief executive, and when further directors will be named.
- How the board will keep its role in shaping AI rules separate from the ministry it reports to.
Sources
- 1.Announcement Of The Inaugural Board Of Directors Of AI Malaysia Berhad Ministry of Digital, Malaysia, 11 September 2026
- 2.AI Malaysia - Driving The Journey Towards An AI Nation By 2030 Ministry of Digital, Malaysia, 28 July 2026
- 3.AI Malaysia: latest news and announcements AI Malaysia Berhad
- 4.File:Putrajaya - view from Tangga Putrajaya 2 - Jul 2024.jpg Wikimedia Commons, 6 July 2024
- 5.File:Front building Perdana Putra Putrajaya 2024.jpg Wikimedia Commons, 4 August 2024
- 6.File:Cyberjaya City Centre MRT Station outview (250812).jpg Wikimedia Commons, 12 August 2025
- 7.File:KWSP Kwasa Damansara, Jalan Sungai Buloh (221104) 1.jpg Wikimedia Commons, 4 November 2022
