A clever IC design bet

The first planned IC design hub sounds like a moonshot but it is certainly a clever and cost-effective way of attempting to fast track Malaysia’s much delayed ascent into the upper segments of the semiconductor industry. Photo: Image by macrovector_official on Freepik

ONE thing that stands out in this government’s plan to nudge the country higher in the semiconductor industry is how it is being done cost-effectively and strategically.

Formerly, billions of ringgit were spent to build wafer fabricators, arguably the pinnacle of the semiconductor value chain, which are capable of transforming silicon wafers into integrated circuits (ICs).