- 4 minutes ago
As AI becomes more autonomous, trust, digital identity and secure infrastructure are becoming critical to the next phase of digital transformation. Datuk Fadzli Shah, Co-Founder of Zetrix, shares how Malaysia can leverage blockchain, trusted digital identity and ethical AI to strengthen competitiveness, accelerate digital finance and position itself as a regional hub for trusted digital infrastructure.
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00:08Artificial intelligence is transforming economies, but as AI becomes more autonomous,
00:14the focus is shifting beyond innovation to trust digital identity and secure infrastructure.
00:19Malaysia has ambitious plans to become a regional digital economy leader.
00:23The challenge now is ensuring AI and digital investment create long-term value,
00:27strengthen productivity and protect trust in an increasingly connected world.
00:32And joining us today is Dato' Fazli Shah, co-founder of Zetrix,
00:35to discuss how trusted digital infrastructure can help shape Malaysia's AI future.
00:41Thank you very much, Dato' Fazli, for joining me.
00:43Firstly, we want to talk about from investment to value creation.
00:46From Zetrix's perspective, what are the key digital foundations Malaysia needs to build today
00:51to ensure AI and digital investment translate into long-term economic value,
00:56productivity and competitiveness?
01:00Yes, first of all, thank you very much, Nina.
01:02Thank you for having us today.
01:05Of course, this is a company which is very close to Martin.
01:09It is one of the core pillars of our...
01:10And with regards to your question, what do we need to build as a nation
01:14to kind of ensure that longevity and economic benefits translate?
01:19We believe that there are three really key pillars that any nation, including Malaysia,
01:24would need to build to realize this AI economy.
01:27The first being a trusted digital identity infrastructure.
01:30The second, a data privacy framework within our laws.
01:35And then the third and probably most importantly, a digital adoption ecosystem.
01:42Because clearly the first is required, identity is required to ensure that digital transactions
01:48will increasingly involve to include individuals, devices, companies, and eventually AI agents.
01:55These systems must be able to verify who the user of the company is or representing
01:59and whether the AI agent is authorized to act on behalf of those agents or those individuals or companies.
02:07The privacy frameworks are especially important because when AI processes all of the data,
02:14some data would have to remain proprietary, some of the data would have to be collected by other services.
02:18So there's a lot of data collection and access and sharing.
02:21And that comes with consent and verification of credentials and ultimately an auditable trail
02:28to enable law enforcement and regulators and powers that be to ensure that transactions are
02:36as how they are supposed to be executed.
02:40This will help the digital services remain reliable, accountable, and also trusted.
02:45And finally, with the ecosystem that this can avail, we would need digital tools,
02:53the workforce to be upskilled, SME adoption to be supported by various parties,
02:58and proven public and private sector use cases to again embolden that trust
03:03and to enable this economy to take heed and ultimately expand.
03:09This will create real economic value by what we believe will be real-world deployments
03:16resulting in high productivity, capable operations, and ultimately regional competitiveness.
03:22All right.
03:23As we talk about digital economy, it will strike us straight into AI right now.
03:27And with the rise of a giant AI where AI agents can make decisions and execute tasks on behalf of
03:33users,
03:33how important is trusted digital identity and verification in ensuring these systems operate safely and responsibly?
03:42Oh, it is absolutely important because when you have AI agents acting on your behalf,
03:47whether for yourself or your company, any system that it engages with must be able to verify its identity,
03:53its authority to act on behalf of you, and ultimately the accountability of those actions taken on your behalf.
03:58Without this, authentic AI creates multiple risks, including impersonations, unauthorized actions,
04:05data leakages, and ultimately loss of accountability.
04:09But within a trusted digital identity layer, it would ensure that every agent's actions are linked to a verified person
04:18or organization
04:19and is scoped to exactly what it's supposed to and authorized to do,
04:23so that this trail would be auditable end-to-end.
04:26And it's very important for high-value use cases such as payments, applications, hiring, business transactions,
04:33and of course, as a nation, for government services delivered to the rug here.
04:38With Avatar, we've designed it such that AI agents can and should be verified in terms of their identity,
04:47the credentials, and the access controls.
04:49We use blockchain technology together with AI in order to achieve this.
04:54Now, mind you, we don't act as the identity issuer.
04:57We rely on trusted sources and or single sources of truth to establish those identities.
05:04And the blockchain then just enables a reference layer of how those identities are linked to the agents.
05:10So this, in turn, will allow an agent to perform what it can or cannot,
05:15or more importantly, stop it from doing what it cannot do,
05:18and then create a trusted environment layer for all participants in the economy.
05:23So by using these AI agents, I believe that the most important thing would be to create a single auditable
05:31framework
05:32and to eliminate the need to repeatedly verify oneself or one's agent for every interaction.
05:41With the focus of Avatar and the future of AI agents,
05:44what problem does Avatar solve that existing AI system cannot?
05:49And how do you see this changing the way businesses and governments deploy AI in the future?
05:57Well, the magic in AI is really that you should need this AI or should want this AI to be
06:02able to act almost autonomously
06:04within the confines and parameters of what you are comfortable with
06:07or what you have hoped to achieve within that transaction.
06:09And so in doing so, and again, as I've shared,
06:14with an auditable and dependable identity verification ecosystem,
06:19that essentially is what we first and foremost solve.
06:22The fact that when you interact with an avatar or an agent or an agent interacts with another agent,
06:28they are doing what they're supposed to do in the confines and parameters of what they're designed to do.
06:33But within that, act autonomously to be able to essentially problem solve
06:37and work their way through the transaction.
06:40Now, if you don't have this layer,
06:43what you ultimately risk is that these agents, you know,
06:47for lack of a better phrase, go rogue
06:49and start acting on your behalf in ways that your business has not anticipated
06:55and ultimately bring into your business much more risk than benefit.
07:02And also, talking about the digital ecosystem
07:05and connecting with Malaysia's digital identity agenda,
07:08how about blockchains-based identity infrastructure
07:11complements Malaysia's digital identity ambitions,
07:15particularly in areas like public service delivery,
07:19fraud prevention and even cross-border digital transactions?
07:24Well, that's a very good question.
07:26Now, we believe that every country will,
07:29you know, based on sovereignty,
07:31initially start with a centralized identity layer,
07:34which in Malaysia's case is also true with my digital ID,
07:37but also with other existing parts of ID,
07:40whether it be your driver's license,
07:43whether it be other parts of your identity,
07:46which is based off essentially your IC.
07:49Now, if you look at the government's standpoint and ambition,
07:57my digital ID aims to enroll virtually the whole country,
08:00and especially in 2026 surpass half the population in terms of sign-up.
08:05Now, this creates a very primed environment
08:11for you to be able to deploy AI and automation
08:13because then you can link it back.
08:15Now, why blockchain?
08:16Because we believe that identities would remain centralized
08:20in terms of issuance,
08:22but essentially, even the government issued an identity,
08:25you would want to be able to work with that identity
08:28within the environment of your bank, for example,
08:31or your favorite e-commerce app.
08:34And even if you look at international use cases,
08:37you'd want to be able to use that also when you travel
08:40or when you send funds abroad.
08:43So, without exposing the core
08:46or rather the centralized identity issuance,
08:50blockchain provides the most viable solution
08:53where identities can be verified via credentials
08:57and without exposing undue risk to the single source of proof.
09:04And also, privacy versus convenience in the digital economy,
09:08that is also one of the important things.
09:10So, how can technologies such as privacy,
09:13persevering verification,
09:15help create a digital economy
09:17where people can access services securely
09:19without compromising control over their personal information?
09:24Certainly.
09:25So, technology has come a long way
09:27in the realm of identity and also blockchain.
09:30There is the framework,
09:32which is called self-sovereign identity,
09:34which allows users to associate themselves
09:37with a verified real-world identity
09:40and that is enabled by blockchain.
09:43Now, this is not something new
09:45because this is also adopted
09:46by the World Wide Web Consortium, the W3C,
09:49which is the same consortium
09:50that set the standards forward
09:51to today's internet HTTP.
09:54So, when you use verified credentials
09:57within this framework
09:58and ultimately are exchanging
10:02or interacting with what we know
10:04as decentralized identifiers,
10:06this ultimately solves that problem
10:09where you're able to preserve your privacy,
10:12you're able to decide
10:14what information about yourself
10:15or the credentials that you carry
10:17should be declared in a transaction
10:21without giving anyone
10:23or any service overreach.
10:25Now, I think if you imagine
10:26that when you walk into your local bank
10:28or you go into some other local services,
10:31in the days before blockchain,
10:33you would have had to hand over your identity,
10:35your IC card,
10:36and for their own records,
10:38they would have taken a photocopy of that.
10:40Now, you have to ask yourself,
10:41where does that copy go
10:42and who has access to it?
10:44With blockchain, there is no copy.
10:47There is a declaration up front.
10:48There is an auditable trail
10:49that that declaration has been made
10:51and then that identity has been verified
10:53and there's no other trail needed beyond that.
10:56And this works because there's no way
10:58for you to fix that credential.
11:01Ultimately, if the National Registry
11:03did an issue with this identity,
11:05it could never exist
11:06or be associated with on a blockchain.
11:08So, the technology is already there.
11:10And in terms of deploying this technology
11:12to, again, kind of meet the needs
11:16of privacy preservation within transactions,
11:18it's already possible
11:19and it's already being done
11:20in many places across the world.
11:22And I'm glad to see that Malaysia
11:25is also at that forefront
11:26in deploying this solution
11:29for our economic growth.
11:32And beyond individual users,
11:34trusted digital identity
11:35also has implications
11:36for how countries share and govern data.
11:39That brings us to Malaysia's role
11:41at the regional level.
11:42As Zetrix AI participates
11:44in global and ASEAN-level discussions
11:46on data collaborations and governance,
11:49what role can Malaysia play
11:51in shaping trusted data flows
11:53in the region?
11:54I think Malaysia
11:56and the rest of the ASEAN member states
11:58are in a very unique
11:59and opportune position.
12:01ASEAN is connected
12:02as an economic block, yes.
12:04But each country has
12:05its own laws,
12:06its own regulators,
12:07its own financial systems,
12:09which are not,
12:10at least not by design,
12:13made interoperable.
12:14This makes ASEAN
12:16a very strong testbed
12:17for trusted data collaboration.
12:18Malaysia's role really should be
12:20as we have done
12:21and demonstrated
12:22in previous cycles
12:24of technological innovation,
12:26be really what I would think
12:29would be fourfold.
12:30Number one,
12:31that in policymaking
12:32and regional standards,
12:34be part of the way markers
12:37and trendsetters in that sense.
12:40We have lots of experience
12:42in charting the cost for ASEAN
12:44with the various blueprints
12:45and even the ASEAN economic
12:50policy documents.
12:52So turning those learnings
12:55and global principles
12:56into practical regional standards
12:57is first and foremost
12:59very important
12:59for any sort of leadership
13:00that Malaysia can play
13:01within the ASEAN region.
13:03Now secondly,
13:04we have the notion
13:04of ASEAN plus one,
13:06multiple countries
13:06which are key partners
13:07of ASEAN.
13:08Now in the ASEAN-China gateway
13:09or this bilateral partnership
13:11or multilateral partnership
13:12between ASEAN and China,
13:14we have very strong
13:15economic and technology links
13:16that exist already.
13:17Now China has already
13:18demonstrated multiple folds
13:20that they've been able
13:21to use such technology
13:23at scale.
13:24And when you can use it
13:25at a scale of over
13:27a billion people,
13:28you can definitely achieve it
13:29at the scale of ASEAN.
13:33But,
13:33and to add value
13:35to kind of the experience,
13:36show how data can travel
13:38across borders
13:39within a trusted framework
13:41within the region.
13:42ASEAN.
13:43we as a country
13:45and as a member state
13:46should definitely be
13:46pursuing regional pilots
13:48because we have
13:49identity layers
13:51similar to other
13:52ASEAN member states.
13:54We have strong
13:54public-private collaborations
13:56and this can create
13:57data sharing frameworks
13:58and real use cases
14:00that can be then copied
14:01and mirrored
14:02and essentially studied
14:04for other economies.
14:06Now the fourth
14:07and probably
14:09an important point
14:10is the notion
14:11of a global south
14:12that we don't let
14:14the AIA race
14:15be left to
14:16an east versus west
14:17kind of dogma
14:18but really be a voice
14:20for the emerging markets
14:21to understand the needs
14:22of SMEs
14:23and developing economies
14:24to help ensure
14:25that regional rules
14:27suit countries
14:27but at different levels
14:30of digital readiness
14:31and to facilitate
14:32ultimately data mobility,
14:33data protection
14:34and interoperability.
14:36Now that's why
14:37at J2J,
14:37we're very proud
14:38to have become a member
14:39of the World Data Organization
14:40as we announced
14:41last year
14:41and what J2AI
14:43hopes to bring
14:44into us
14:45in perspective
14:45and to global discussions
14:47is really
14:48how we can handle
14:49trusted data flows
14:50across borders,
14:51responsible data governance,
14:53cross-border digital transactions
14:54and again,
14:55I cannot stress
14:56enough
14:57practical standards
14:58for emerging markets
14:59such as ours.
15:02And also, Datuk,
15:03once trusted data
15:04can move securely
15:05across borders,
15:06it also creates
15:07new possibilities
15:07for digital finance
15:08and cross-border transactions.
15:10What opportunities
15:11can blockchain-based
15:13settlement systems
15:14bring to Malaysia,
15:15particularly in areas
15:16such as cross-border trade,
15:18digital payments
15:19and even financial inclusion?
15:21Oh, that is one
15:23of my favorite topics
15:23today because
15:24we are thinking
15:25day and night
15:26about how this can work
15:27because ultimately
15:28if you have AI agents
15:29acting for yourselves,
15:31they are going to need money,
15:32right?
15:33And not just to be able
15:34to spend that money
15:35in transactions
15:35on your behalf,
15:36but also,
15:37you know,
15:38if AI agents
15:38are delivering some services,
15:40they have to handle
15:41and collect that money.
15:42And the auditable trail
15:43is already solved
15:44by blockchain,
15:44but countries
15:46have to be ready
15:47and unglaterally
15:48to Malaysia
15:48amongst those
15:49most open
15:50and most ready
15:51to receive
15:52this new wave
15:53of innovation
15:53under Ben Agarra's
15:55Digital Asset Innovation Hub.
15:56Malaysia is
15:57and has announced
15:58that it's testing
15:59ringgit stable coins
16:00and tokenized deposits
16:01to include
16:02domestic payments,
16:03cross-border payments
16:04and tokenized
16:05asset settlement.
16:06Now,
16:06this is especially important
16:07because
16:09the existing
16:10financial systems
16:12that banks run on,
16:14of course,
16:15they are dated,
16:16but more importantly,
16:17they rely on
16:19a network of trust
16:20between banks
16:21in itself,
16:22which doesn't translate
16:23well into
16:24a fully online
16:25and autonomous economy.
16:26So,
16:27that's why
16:28where we see
16:29the opportunity
16:30is that many
16:31of the currencies
16:33in ASEAN
16:33are restricted currencies
16:36unlike the U.S. dollar.
16:37So,
16:38let me take
16:39the conversation
16:39away from
16:40what people typically
16:40think of stable coins
16:41as an unbridled
16:44exchange
16:44of financial value
16:47because
16:47that can't happen
16:49with restricted currencies.
16:51So,
16:51with JMYR,
16:53we're trying to figure out
16:54how ringgit-backed
16:56stable coins
16:56can exist
16:57as really
16:58an economic unit
16:59to accept a trade
17:00but not really
17:01as a speculative
17:02cryptocurrency
17:03currency.
17:04So,
17:04this will
17:05enable
17:05faster settlement
17:07programmable money.
17:08You know,
17:09as you know,
17:10the Madani government
17:11has put out
17:12multiple programs
17:13for intervention
17:14to help the route yet.
17:16What if that
17:17can be brought
17:19together with
17:19these new technologies
17:20so that the money
17:21can arrive
17:21at who needs it
17:24and at the right time
17:25and the right amount
17:26are ultimately
17:27being able
17:28to achieve
17:29the government's
17:30dream of
17:30targeting subsidies
17:31at the most
17:32effectual
17:32and scalable
17:35stage.
17:36So,
17:37again,
17:38this is a system
17:39that can work
17:3924-7
17:40and it can have
17:42reconciliation
17:43which is transparent
17:44and I believe
17:46that this will
17:46promote trust
17:47not just within
17:48the local economy
17:49but for cross-border
17:50settlements too.
17:51So,
17:52this ultimately
17:53comes full circle
17:55into a story
17:56of financial inclusion
17:57because when you
17:59use these technologies
18:00not only are you
18:01automating and
18:01enabling things
18:02at scale,
18:03you're also reducing
18:04many of those
18:05intermediary costs.
18:06So,
18:07when you can support
18:07lower costs
18:08for remittances,
18:09sorry,
18:10for remittances,
18:11remittances,
18:12sorry,
18:13when you can support
18:14those lower costs
18:16for remittances,
18:17it can expand
18:18your payment
18:19access for not
18:20just individuals
18:22and businesses
18:23but those
18:24who may traditionally
18:26have been unbanked
18:27or underserved
18:28and the micro
18:30end of SMEs.
18:32And as digital
18:34payment also
18:34ecosystem evolves,
18:36innovations such
18:36as stable coins
18:37are gaining
18:38more attention
18:39but innovation
18:41also needs
18:41trust and confidence.
18:43What safeguards
18:43are needed
18:44to ensure
18:44innovation such
18:45as stable coins
18:47develop within
18:47the framework
18:48that protects users
18:49while still
18:50encouraging innovation?
18:52This is one
18:53of the reasons
18:54why I'm highly
18:55encouraged by
18:55Ben Agarra
18:56and the
18:58innovation
18:58hub approach
18:59this, right?
19:01They're taking
19:01a practical
19:01approach in terms
19:02of what can
19:03be done
19:04or how the
19:05technology can
19:05be used
19:08and I think
19:10in tandem
19:11to that,
19:11developing the
19:12regulations
19:12as we go
19:13along in terms
19:14of what's
19:15really effectual
19:16for the economy.
19:17Now,
19:18with regards
19:18to developing
19:19a ringgit
19:19stable coin,
19:20we believe
19:21that obviously
19:21it must be
19:22fully reserve
19:23backed, right?
19:24Every one
19:24JNYR or
19:25one ringgit
19:26stable coin
19:26in circulation
19:27needs to have
19:28one ringgit
19:29in the backing
19:29in the treasury
19:30or the trust
19:32account.
19:33Now,
19:34it needs to be
19:34transparent
19:36in terms of
19:37the reserves.
19:38It needs to have
19:38regulatory oversight
19:39and then it has
19:40to have clear
19:41boundaries
19:41to define
19:43what the stable
19:43coin can and
19:44cannot be used
19:44for,
19:45to protect
19:46not just
19:46consumers,
19:46but also
19:47to protect
19:48the businesses
19:48that will be
19:49using this
19:51as a form
19:51of settlement.
19:52And of course,
19:53because stable
19:54coins,
19:54by definition,
19:56are on a
19:57blockchain,
19:58they already
19:59create an
19:59auditable trail
20:00for every
20:00transaction
20:00that can be
20:01traced.
20:01Now,
20:02we are fully
20:02supportive
20:03for stable
20:03coins to
20:04enable the
20:05real-world
20:05economy and
20:06the online
20:07economy for
20:09good actors
20:09to perform
20:11transactions,
20:12which are in
20:13line with
20:13the laws.
20:13stable coins
20:15are a great
20:16place to
20:17do this
20:17because you
20:18can identify
20:19very easily
20:20those for
20:20being bad
20:21actors and
20:21not complying
20:22with the
20:22law or
20:23using it
20:23for nefarious
20:24reasons.
20:25This is
20:26much more
20:26effective and
20:27efficient than
20:28cash and
20:29by some
20:29argument,
20:30the existing
20:30banking system.
20:32And looking
20:33beyond regulations
20:34also,
20:35this could also
20:36present an
20:36opportunity for
20:37Malaysia to
20:37differentiate itself
20:38globally and
20:39how can Malaysia
20:40leverage its
20:41Islamic finance
20:42expertise and
20:43ethical AI
20:43capabilities to
20:45create a
20:45differentiated
20:46position in
20:47the global
20:47AI landscape?
20:49Well, the
20:49global AI
20:50race is about
20:51who can build
20:52AI that people,
20:52institutions and
20:53markets can
20:54trust.
20:55Global AI
20:55players are
20:55localizing models
20:56for regional
20:57languages and
20:58markets.
20:58But we have to
20:59think beyond
20:59that, right?
21:00We have to
21:00think about
21:01what's a
21:02use case or
21:02a vertical
21:05that translates
21:06across multiple
21:06markets.
21:07Malaysia has
21:08already established
21:09itself as a
21:10leader within
21:11Islamic finance.
21:12And so I
21:13don't think we
21:14should try to
21:14reinvent the
21:15wheel or
21:15try to
21:17rediscover
21:17something that
21:18we could be
21:18good at.
21:18We should
21:19double down
21:19on things that
21:20we already
21:20hold global
21:21credibility on.
21:23So within
21:23Islamic finance
21:24and the
21:25Islamic economy,
21:26you have
21:26hard of
21:26certification and
21:28you also have
21:28multicultural
21:29governance.
21:30And so within
21:31these, you can
21:32develop AI
21:32models and AI
21:33standards that
21:35complement things
21:36that Malaysia
21:36already has a
21:37leadership position
21:38in.
21:38So with
21:40that, we
21:40support it
21:41with Norei,
21:42our LLM,
21:42which is
21:43tailored towards
21:43such applications.
21:45And we
21:46already found
21:47early use
21:47cases within
21:49the fields of
21:49law, finance,
21:50healthcare,
21:52education
21:52governance,
21:53naturally the
21:54halal supply
21:55chain and
21:56industry.
21:57And that
21:58shows you
21:59that you
21:59can use
22:00LLM to
22:02represent a
22:03view which
22:04is otherwise
22:04not a
22:05Western or
22:06purely Eastern
22:07philosophy.
22:07So this
22:08can, you
22:09know, of
22:09course reflect
22:10local values,
22:11cultural sensitivities,
22:12but more
22:13importantly the
22:13priorities of
22:14what is a
22:15global style.
22:16Now, these
22:17collaborations are
22:18not easily
22:18found because
22:19you have to
22:20balance those
22:22who are
22:23profound
22:24academic experts
22:25with those
22:26who are at
22:28the cutting
22:28edge of
22:28technology.
22:29But within
22:30Malaysia and
22:30within JAKIM
22:31and INSIA,
22:32we have found
22:33partners that
22:33can marry
22:34both.
22:34And so I
22:35think that it's
22:36very, it's
22:37very encouraging
22:38that Malaysia
22:39can and
22:41evidently is
22:41building upon
22:42its existing
22:43strength.
22:44And finally,
22:45if we bring
22:46all these
22:46elements together
22:47from trusted
22:48AI and
22:49digital identity
22:50to digital
22:50finance and
22:51governance,
22:52so looking
22:53ahead over the
22:53next five to
22:54ten years,
22:55what does
22:55success look
22:56like for
22:56Malaysia in
22:57becoming a
22:58regional hub for
22:59trusted digital
22:59infrastructure and
23:01what needs to
23:01happen now to
23:02get there?
23:03Well, in the
23:04next five to
23:04ten years,
23:05Malaysia, to
23:06become a
23:07trusted digital
23:07economy, it
23:08must be built
23:09on digital
23:09identity, AI
23:11governance, secure
23:12trust modern
23:13digital transactions
23:14and regional data
23:15and payment
23:16infrastructure that
23:17will be tested
23:18and proven.
23:19For businesses,
23:20deploying trusted
23:21AI agents into
23:22real-world flows
23:23will connect
23:24identity documents
23:25and approvals
23:26to enable
23:26payments and
23:27expansion beyond
23:28Malaysia with
23:29less or minimal
23:30friction.
23:31For our
23:32governments and
23:33our citizens,
23:33public services
23:34become more
23:35seamless, less
23:36repeated paperwork.
23:37I cannot stress
23:38the amount of
23:38times that people
23:39should not have
23:40to re-enter the
23:41same information
23:43again just because
23:43it's a second or
23:44third form in
23:45the next agency
23:47down the line in
23:47the same flow.
23:49Now, this will
23:50make our entire
23:51economy more
23:52efficient and
23:53auditable.
23:54But what needs
23:55to happen now is
23:56that strong digital
23:57identity needs to
23:59be established and
24:00to be brought
24:01together, right?
24:02It would be great
24:03if we could have
24:04a pilot between
24:06two or more
24:07Asian countries
24:08to showcase
24:09that you can
24:11actually build
24:12the opportunity
24:14between some
24:15of our member
24:15states.
24:16What also needs
24:17to happen now is
24:18data privacy and
24:19verification frameworks
24:20must be established.
24:21A lot of this
24:22work has already
24:22been done by the
24:23Ministry of
24:23Digital in
24:24Malaysia.
24:24And I think at
24:25the regional level,
24:26there is also the
24:27Asian Digital
24:28Minister's platform
24:29where a lot of
24:31this is being
24:31discussed and
24:32I hope a lot
24:34of it will be
24:34adopted across
24:35many of the
24:35economies.
24:37Practical AI
24:38adoption is
24:39very, very key
24:40because businesses
24:41are not going
24:42to invest in
24:42something which
24:43is just
24:44frivolous and
24:44maybe nice to
24:46have or flashy.
24:48Businesses need
24:48to ultimately
24:49invest or
24:50businesses who
24:51want to
24:52ultimately invest
24:52in things that
24:53translate into
24:54the bottom line,
24:55into not just
24:55productivity but
24:56real monetary
24:58growth for that
24:59business.
25:00So that's a
25:01very real problem
25:02that AI will
25:02replace workers.
25:04And what we
25:05say at Zetrix is
25:06that workers
25:07will not be
25:07replaced by AI
25:08but will be
25:09replaced by a
25:09worker that
25:10can embrace
25:12and use AI
25:12effectively.
25:13And I think
25:14that's where we
25:14are right now
25:15in terms of
25:15this adoption
25:16curve and
25:17that's where
25:17our focus
25:18needs to be.
25:19So ultimately
25:21all of this
25:21can be brought
25:23together so that
25:24Malaysia can
25:25leverage its
25:25existing position
25:26within ASEAN
25:27where China
25:28is one of
25:29our key
25:30economic
25:30partners within
25:32our existing
25:33leadership role
25:35in Islamic
25:35finance and
25:36the halal
25:37economy and
25:38try to build
25:39something not
25:40to say unique
25:41but something
25:41that can add
25:42value at a
25:42global scale.
25:44As AI continues
25:46to reshape
25:46economies, the
25:47real differentiator
25:48will not simply
25:49be how fast
25:50countries adopt
25:51the technology
25:51but how well
25:52they build trust,
25:53security and
25:54governance around
25:55it.
25:55Malaysia's
25:56opportunity lies
25:56in creating
25:57a digital
25:57ecosystem that
25:58is innovative,
25:59inclusive and
26:00trusted.
26:01Thank you so
26:01much, Dato'
26:02Fazli Shah,
26:03co-founder of
26:04Zetrix for
26:04your insights.
26:05We look forward
26:06to seeing how
26:06Malaysia advances
26:07its vision of
26:08becoming a
26:09regional hub for
26:10trusted digital
26:11infrastructure.
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