By Alice Chambers |
Microsoft has reaffirmed its commitment to powering Southeast Asia’s AI future by unveiling major cloud and AI investments in Malaysia and Indonesia.
In Malaysia, Microsoft marked the official launch of Malaysia West, its first cloud region in the country, located in Greater Kuala Lumpur. The AI-ready hyperscale infrastructure – which was made possible by Microsoft’s $2.2 billion investment in Malaysia – features three availability zones and offers locally hosted Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 services, as well as enhanced data residency, security and low-latency access. It also signals Microsoft’s continued support of Malaysia’s national ambition to lead the digital and AI economy in Southeast Asia.
“With this cloud region, we can leverage the latest digital and AI technologies to move up the value chain,” said Gobind Singh Deo, digital minister for Malaysia. “The government has set the stage for a trusted digital environment for businesses to thrive, aligned with Microsoft’s Trusted Cloud Principles.”
Microsoft has also announced BINA AI Malaysia, an initiative aimed at accelerating national AI adoption. As part of this, Microsoft is progressing plans to establish a National AI Innovation Center in collaboration with EY Malaysia, national energy firm Petronas and the National AI Office. Microsoft also reiterated its ongoing work through AI For Malaysia’s Future, a national skilling programme that has already trained 400,000 Malaysians on AI and digital technologies. It is now halfway towards its goal of reaching 800,000 people by the end of 2025.
According to IDC, Microsoft’s new cloud region in Malaysia is projected to contribute over $10.9 billion in new revenues and create 37,000 jobs by 2028. Key early adopters include Petronas, fintech TNG Digital, solution provider Scicom Berhad, and startups like Senang and FinHero.
Laurence SI, managing director of Microsoft Malaysia, introduced BINA AI Malaysia at the Microsoft AI Tour Kuala Lumpur
Meanwhile, in Indonesia, Microsoft has officially opened its first Indonesia Central cloud region, as part of a $1.7 billion investment planned up to 2028.
“Indonesia’s vision for AI and digital transformation requires trusted infrastructure as its foundation,” said Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of cloud and AI at Microsoft. “With the launch of Indonesia Central, we are bringing the full power of the Microsoft Cloud closer to Indonesian innovators.”
Located with three availability zones, the Indonesia Central region offers enterprise-grade security, local data residency and sustainability features aligned with Microsoft’s global goals, including becoming carbon negative by 2030. Services like Azure, Microsoft 365 Copilot and Azure OpenAI will help organisations scale innovation while complying with national regulations.
The cloud region is already used by more than 100 organisations, including national firms like automotive group Astra International, Bank Central Asia, oil and gas company Pertamina and Telkom Indonesia. For example, Astra has implemented an AI-powered Dealer Management System using Azure OpenAI and Microsoft Copilot to improve operational efficiency across its dealership network of over 300 subsidiaries and 190,000 employees.
IDC projects Microsoft’s cloud ecosystem in Indonesia will generate $15.2 billion in economic value and over 106,000 jobs between 2025 and 2028.
Beyond infrastructure, Microsoft is partnering with the Indonesian Ministry of Communications and Digital Affairs on elevAIte, an AI skilling initiative to train one million Indonesians by 2025. It’s also contributing to the Nusantara Data Center Academy, a vocational data centre skills initiative.
“This is more than infrastructure – it’s a foundation for national progress,” said Dharma Simorangkir, president director of Microsoft Indonesia. “We are empowering Indonesia to innovate locally and scale globally.”
Microsoft has opened its first cloud region in Indonesia to unlock the new AI economy