As the US and China lock horns, Malaysia hopes to harness an AI revolution

Kulim, Malaysia – When tech giant AT&S decided a few years ago that it needed to ramp up production to keep pace with the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, it did not look to its largest manufacturing facilities in China. The Austrian firm's plants in Chongqing and Shanghai – opened in 2022 and 2016, respectively – employ some 9,000 workers between them, churning out high-end components used in everything from consumer electronics to cars. But AT&S was at the same time coming to grips with the risks of concentrating production in one country. Like many tech firms grappling with the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic and the trade war salvoes between the United States and China, AT&S decided it needed to diversify its supply chains. Malaysia quickly emerged at the top of the company's list of potential locations for its next plant.