Tanjung Malim First Station Of 'AI 4 Belia' Programme, Empowering Usage Among Youth

TANJUNG MALIM, Oct 26 (Bernama) -- The Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) is for the first time organising the ‘AI 4 Belia’ programme, aimed at empowering this group with artificial intelligence (AI) technology skills in preparation for the challenges of the future job market.

Its minister, Chang Lih Kang said the organisation of the AI 4 Belia programme is a MOSTI initiative to cultivate Science, Technology and Innovation (STI), especially the use of AI in the lives of Malaysians, particularly among the youth.

“This programme is important to give exposure to participants, especially the youth, regarding the use of AI in facing the challenges of the future job market and making Malaysia more competitive," he said when speaking at the AI 4 Belia programme at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) here today.

"The active participation of youth in initiatives like this is an important step in preparing them to face future challenges, especially in the high-tech job sector."

He said Tanjung Malim was the first station of the programme, and the response here was encouraging with the participation of 100 participants in the programme which is a collaboration between UPSI and Pixlr.

"Young people are the successors in developing Malaysia in the future, and they are also pioneers of future jobs in fields such as Artificial Intelligence Engineering, Robotics, Cyber Security Agents, Blockchain Technology and so on," he said.

“Additionally, AI is seen as being able to help youth in pursuing careers as innovation entrepreneurs or tech entrepreneurs because AI helps young people involved in business to analyse data, plan product marketing, and optimise operations with existing resources."

Chang said his team believes that by gradually increasing knowledge and awareness of youth regarding AI, the younger generation of Malaysians will be better prepared to face the technological challenges of the future.

"As a result, our youth will not only become smart AI users but also leaders in creating innovations that leverage this technological advancement for the development of the nation,” he also said.

"This is in line with the aspiration to make Malaysia a leading technology development country by 2030.”

Meanwhile, at the same event, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was also signed between UPSI, represented by UPSI Faculty of Computing and Meta-Technology dean Associate Professor Dr. Maizatul Hayati Mohamad Yatim and Pixlr, represented by Pixlr Sdn Bhd group executive officer Warren Leow.

-- BERNAMA