GEORGE TOWN (BERNAMA) – The Penang Silicon Design @5km+ initiative launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in December 2024 can further strengthen Penang’s position as a regional technology hub and drive economic growth by developing the IC design industry in the state.
Collaborative Microelectronic Design Excellence Center (CEDEC), Universiti Sains Malaysia director associate professor Dr Asrulnizam Abd Manaf said the initiative is a strategic step to enhance the commercial and research ecosystem in integrated circuit (IC) design.
He said the initiative also supports the aspirations of the National Semiconductor Strategy (NSS) in driving Malaysia as a global research and development (R&D) hub while strengthening collaboration between universities and industries as well as developing talent in the field of intellectual property (IP).
“The three components in Penang Silicon Design @5km+ – the IC and Digital Design Park, Penang Chip Design Academy, and Silicon Research and Incubation Center – will be able to form a complete ecosystem that provides infrastructure, talent support, and subsidy incentives to attract domestic and foreign investments in the IC design sector,” he told Bernama.
According to Asrulnizam, development in the semiconductor industry, particularly in IC design leading to IP development, requires significant investment, such as servers, electronic design automation (EDA) software tools like Cadence, Synopsys, and Mentor, as well as access to process design kits (PDK) from chip fabrication companies, in addition to facilities for post-silicon verification of chips after fabrication.
He said CEDEC will support Penang Silicon Design @5km+ as a technology collaborator by providing access and consultancy for the multi-project wafer (MPW) project with Silterra Malaysia Sdn Bhd, enabling startups to develop IP prototypes using Silterra’s PDK.
“The collaboration between CEDEC and Silterra in MPW has been ongoing for 18 years, involving 18 universities with access to PDK for teaching and research purposes.
“Therefore, Penang Silicon Design @5km+ will become a one-stop centre platform where startups and multinational companies (MNCs) can access shared facilities within a radius of 5km+,” he added.
Meanwhile, Asrulnizam said that Penang Silicon Design @5km+ indirectly supports the aspiration of NSS to enhance the competitiveness of Malaysia’s semiconductor industry.
He said that the provision of shared facilities such as office space, servers, EDA software (Cadence, Synopsys, and Mentor), as well as fabrication and post-silicon verification facilities, can attract investors from both domestic and international markets to invest in IC design, especially in Penang.
“Additionally, initiatives through subsidy schemes can reduce the cost for startups to be active in the development of IPs and prototyping facilities. This, in turn, drives the capability of startups to compete globally in developing high-impact IPs,” he said.
Asrulnizam said that this complete ecosystem would also indirectly attract the interest of involvement from multinational companies such as Intel and AMD, as well as startups and R&D centres like CEDEC to collaborate more closely in an academia-industry consortium towards completing the development of IC design up to advanced packaging technology.
He said this could further unlock the potential of Penang Silicon Design @5km+ to become a regional research hub that attracts industry players from Southeast Asia in line with the globalisation aspirations of NSS.
“Additionally, CEDEC is also involved in the Structured Industrial Apprenticeship Programme (SIAP), which provides industrial training modules such as analogue IC design, digital front-end, and back-end design to 1,500 to 1,600 students each year, involving universities such as USM, Universiti Teknologi Mara, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, Universiti Teknologi Petronas, and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman.”
In addition to nurturing new talents, Asrulnizam said this initiative also provides opportunities for engineers to upskill or reskill their areas of expertise to meet the increasingly challenging demands of the industry.
He added that Penang Silicon Design @5km+ is a strategic move that not only develops the country’s high-tech economy but also strengthens Malaysia’s position as a key player in the global semiconductor industry.
On Dec 7, 2024, Anwar, who is also the Minister of Finance, launched and announced a MYR50 million allocation for the Penang Silicon Design @5km+ initiative.
Penang Silicon Design @5km+ is spearheaded by the Penang government through its agency, InvestPenang, to revolutionise Malaysia’s semiconductor industry in line with the NSS.
