KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Malaysia launched on

Thursday a national artificial intelligence office aimed at

shaping policies and addressing regulatory issues, as it looks

to establish itself as a regional hub for AI development.

The Southeast Asian country has secured billions of dollars in

investment in the past year from global tech firms seeking to

build critical infrastructure to cater to growing demand for

their cloud and AI services.

"This is another historical moment in our digital

transformation journey," Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said at

the launch of the new office.

The office is expected to serve as a centralised agency for

AI, providing strategic planning, research and development as

well as regulatory oversight, among others, according to details

published on its website.

It will pursue seven deliverables in its first year,

including developing a code of ethics, an AI regulatory

framework and a five-year AI technology action plan until 2030.

The government on Thursday also announced strategic partnerships

with six companies, including Amazon ( AMZN ), Google

and Microsoft ( MSFT ), which have all announced data centre,

cloud and AI projects in Malaysia in the past year.

Digital ventures have helped propel Malaysia's economy in

2024, with 71.1 billion ringgit ($16.06 billion) in approved

investments in the information and communications sub-sector,

the its investment authority said this week.

($1 = 4.4270 ringgit)