The Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI), Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB), and Ericsson announced an extension of their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the commercialisation of 5G-enabled Science, Technology, Innovation and Economy (STIE) solutions for companies in Malaysia.
The tripartite MoU was presented to the partners at the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona 2023 event today.
Under the extended MoU, the partners will contribute towards the development of the MRANTI 5G Experience Centre by providing content and support to equip innovators, researchers, startups and businesses on 5G literacy. It has the shared goal of fast-tracking the integration of 5G technology into businesses.
“Through this collaboration, it will strengthen MRANTI’s position as the leading 4IR hub with facilities and resources to support industry growth in dronetech, healthtech, agritech, bioscience and 4IR enabling technologies,” said MRANTI chief executive officer, Dzuleira Abu Bakar.
“Specifically, we aim to accelerate the commercialisation of STIE-related innovations enabled by 5G. In the upcoming year, the partners are planning to facilitate more targeted discussions and interactions with innovators, as well as opening our 5G experience centre to businesses,” she added.
The hope is that this renewed collaboration will draw a large cohort of innovators to the park.
Moving forward MRANTI, DNB and Ericsson will continue to work closely on the planning and implementation of 5G infrastructure, as well as the facilitation of knowledge-sharing sessions on 5G technology and related capabilities.
“With DNB having delivered 5G coverage to MRANTI Park over the last year, I am hopeful that businesses in the area can now leverage the ultrafast and low latency connectivity to develop new and exciting 5G-enabled products and services,” said DNB chief operating officer, Nasution Mohamed.
“This initiative will provide the additional boost for Malaysia to leapfrog in the region and be more competitive by preparing it for greater digitalisation and adoption of 5G enabled technologies such as large numbers of connected devices, real-time interactions, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning," said Ericsson Malaysia, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh head, David Hägerbro. In 2021 Ericsson entered a 10-year partnership with DNB to deliver a nationwide 5G single wholesale network for Malaysia, and last July, Ericsson selected Malaysia as the first location in Southeast Asia to manufacture 5G equipment for domestic and regional markets.
The 5G Experience Centre at MRANTI Park is expected to be launched in March this year as a space where visitors can learn about advancements in 5G technology through use cases and experiences.
Previously the MoU was signed in 2022 with the initial goal of preparing MRANTI Park for 5G technology and raising awareness of it in the local community. The collaboration resulted in the park becoming 5G ready, with download speeds of more than 600Mbps. It also hosted physical and digital 5G engagements with MRANTI innovators and the community, during MRANTI 5G Open Day and National Science Week.
