With Southeast Asia 3 laying the foundations for scalable AI adoption, Microsoft is enabling more businesses to evolve into becoming Frontier – empowering human ambition and finding AI-first differentiation. These firms are maximizing their impact and creating value in new ways.
While many organizations are still in the early stages of this journey, others have progressed to more collaborative models where humans and AI agents work together toward shared goals. We’re seeing this play out across several organizations in Malaysia:
AFFIN Group became the first bank in Asia Pacific to go live with a digital core banking platform running on Microsoft Azure. Built on a cloud-native foundation, this milestone positions AFFIN at the forefront of innovation, enabling greater agility, security, and personalized services at scale.
PETRONAS envisions a future where AI is deeply embedded in the fabric of the organisation – powering decisions, accelerating innovation, and driving sustainable growth. By empowering its people with AI, PETRONAS is building the foundation for transformative impact. Through this collaboration and broader joint efforts, the organisation looks forward to advancing its AI journey and fostering innovation ecosystems with like-minded partners for a more sustainable future.
RHB Bank is leveraging Azure OpenAI, integrated within Microsoft Teams, to streamline processes and support innovation across functions. The bilingual solution, available in English and Bahasa Malaysia, enables employees to retrieve information quickly and accurately, enhancing operational efficiency while adhering to robust security protocols. This contributes to a more seamless and responsive banking experience for customers.
(Photo above) Ryan Teoh, Group Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer, RHB Bank; Ruslan Islahudin, Group Chief HR Officer, PETRONAS; Joanne Rodrigues, Group Chief Financial Officer, Affin Bank Group; and Judson Althoff, CEO of Microsoft’s Commercial Organization, shared their insights during a panel discussion at the AI Tour in Kuala Lumpur.
Empowering Malaysians with AI skills through AIForMYFuture
To ensure inclusive transformation, Microsoft continues to invest in skilling through AI for Malaysia’s Future (AIForMYFuture), a national initiative aimed at equipping 800,000 Malaysians with AI-related skills by the end of 2025. As of October 2025, more than 734,000 individuals have been skilled across the government, large and small-medium corporations, startups, education institutions, underserved communities, as well as the general workforce.
(Photo above) Laurence Si, Managing Director, Microsoft Malaysia, at the Microsoft AI Tour Kuala Lumpur on November 4, 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Laurence Si, Managing Director, Microsoft Malaysia, said, “As a trusted technology partner to Malaysia for over 33 years, Microsoft is committed to empowering the nation’s workforce with the skills needed to thrive in the AI economy. Through AIForMYFuture, we are working with the government, industry, and communities to ensure every Malaysian is equipped with the skills to thrive in the AI economy.
“Additionally, the upcoming Southeast Asia 3 cloud region reinforces Microsoft’s continued commitment to deliver secure, resilient, and scalable cloud services that will accelerate innovation and strengthen Malaysia’s position as a regional digital leader,” he added.
Building an AI-powered foundation for inclusive growth
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