CHIEF Minister Chow Kon Yeow took the opportunity to highlight Penang’s position as Malaysia’s economic powerhouse and global innovation hub during the Penang, Malaysia Business Seminar, held at the Malaysia Pavilion of World Expo 2025 in Osaka today.
The event, organised by InvestPenang with support from JETRO, carried the theme “Penang: Gateway to Southeast Asia’s Innovation Economy.” It served as a platform to promote Penang’s investment landscape while strengthening ties with Japanese business leaders.
“Penang may be Malaysia’s second smallest state, but we are proud to be known as the ‘Silicon Valley of the East’ — a reputation built since the 1970s. It began when eight pioneering multinational companies — the “Eight Samurais” — Intel Corporation, Hewlett Packard (now Keysight Technologies and Agilent Technologies), Robert Bosch, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Litronix (now Osram Opto Semiconductors), Hitachi (now Renesas Electronic), Clarion, and National Semiconductor (no longer present in Penang following a corporate M&A exercise) – chose Penang as their base,” Chow said.
Over the past five decades, Penang has evolved from a labour-intensive assembly hub into a centre for semiconductors, advanced electronics, and medical technology. Today, the state is home to more than 350 multinational corporations, 6,500 SMEs, and over 200 Malaysian digital companies.
“We are proud to host four of the world’s top 10 semiconductor leaders and six of the top 30 global medical device companies, together contributing to more than 5% of global semiconductor sales,” he added.
Chow underscored Japan’s role as one of Penang’s closest partners, with Japanese investments in the state totalling RM1.4 billion from 2020 to mid-2025. Approximately 70 Japanese companies currently operate in Penang, including Advantest, Ibiden, Kobelco, Renesas, and Towa. In 2024, trade between Penang and Japan reached RM35.1 billion, placing Japan among Penang’s top 10 trading partners.
“Looking ahead, we hope to open new avenues of collaboration — especially in semiconductor design, digital innovation, and co-development projects, where Penang’s strengths and Japan’s excellence can combine to create even greater opportunities.
“One of our proudest milestones is the Penang Silicon Design @5KM+ (PSD@5KM+) initiative, launched in December 2024 by our Prime Minister, YAB Dato’ Seri Utama Anwar Ibrahim. This initiative builds a thriving design and innovation hub in the Bayan Lepas area, centred around three key pillars: The Penang IC Design & Digital Park; The Penang Chip Design Academy (PCDA) and The Penang Silicon Research and Incubation Space.”
As part of the programme, several Penang-based IC design companies — Oppstar Technology, Silicon X, SkyeChip, and Tenasic Technology — were introduced to Japanese investors. These firms, central to the PSD@5KM+ ecosystem, represent Penang’s capabilities in semiconductor front-end design and are actively seeking co-innovation and partnership opportunities with Japanese businesses. This effort also supports Malaysia’s National Semiconductor Strategy.
In addition to the seminar, InvestPenang, the principal investment promotion agency of the Penang State Government, and participating companies joined a business matching session organised by MATRADE, with further networking opportunities scheduled throughout the day.
Chow extended his appreciation to the state’s partners — JETRO Kuala Lumpur and supporting federal agencies, including MITI, MIDA, and MATRADE — for their collaboration, and InvestPenang for leading the organisation of the programme.
“Once again, I warmly invite you to be part of Penang’s next chapter as a hub for innovation, design, and technology in Southeast Asia. Together, let us shape the future of the global semiconductor and innovation economy,” he concluded.