TAIWAN: Sarawak has gained international recognition for its artificial intelligence (AI) push, securing two WITSA Global AI Awards for public policy and investment.
The awards were presented at the WITSA Global AI Summit 2026 in Taipei, where Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) Berhad represented the state in engagements with global AI leaders, policymakers and industry players.
SDEC said the recognition reflected Sarawak’s efforts to create an enabling environment for digital transformation and AI development, while attracting investment and fostering innovation.
SDEC’s Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Ir Ts Sudarnoto Osman, said Sarawak was exploring how global developments could shape its own direction in emerging technologies.
“We are exploring how global developments can inform Sarawak’s own direction in areas of our interest, such as AI Grid models, tokenisation, sovereign AI capabilities, and models that better reflect local knowledge and conditions.
“This means strengthening local capabilities while remaining open to international partnerships and technology providers and, where appropriate, open-source approaches,” he said in his keynote address at the summit on Tuesday (Sept. 1).
Sudarnoto said Sarawak’s digital journey was progressing from vision to investment, capability and application, with the state increasingly seeking to move from technology adoption towards technology creation.
The approach, he said, was aimed at developing homegrown talent, solutions and innovations capable of creating value for Sarawak and its people.
Earlier this year, SDEC became a founding hub partner of the WITSA Global AI Ecosystem Network (WITSA GAIN), which connects stakeholders to global expertise, shared resources, innovation, and cross-border opportunities.
Sarawak is also set to host the WITSA Global AI Summit 2027 in conjunction with the International Digital Economy Conference Sarawak (IDECS) 2027 in Kuching.
SDEC said the hosting would strengthen Sarawak’s role as a bridge between ASEAN and the global AI community while providing a platform to showcase the state’s digital capabilities, initiatives and investment opportunities.
The WITSA Global AI Summit, launched in Taipei in 2025, is organised by the World Innovation, Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA).
Its second edition, themed ‘AI Alive, Beyond the Future’, brought together AI leaders, innovators, policymakers and industry players to discuss developments, policies, investments and opportunities shaping the global AI ecosystem.
