Fast, factual wire coverage from across Malaysia and the region.
Malaysia is capitalizing on the global AI boom to become one of the world's top exporters of semiconductor-related hardware, with data centre investments reaching 18% of GDP. However, recent electoral setbacks for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim raise questions about political stability.
India is racing to build mega data centres to compete in artificial intelligence, but residents in Visakhapatnam fear environmental damage and inflated job promises from Google and Reliance projects backed by government subsidies.
Malaysia will approve data centre projects only if energy and water supplies remain adequate for residents and local industries, the government has pledged through a dedicated task force reviewing each application.
New York has become the first US state to impose a statewide moratorium on large data centre projects, freezing facilities of 50 megawatts or larger to develop stronger regulations amid rapid AI-driven expansion.
Nations from the US to Europe are imposing construction freezes and bans on new data centres, citing strain on electricity grids, water supplies and local communities amid the AI boom.