Malaysia’s Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry said on Wednesday it is verifying media reports that a Chinese firm operating in the country is using servers fitted with Nvidia and AI chips to train large language models.
The ministry “is still in the process of verifying the matter with relevant agencies if any domestic law or regulation has been breached”, it said in a statement.
The Wall Street Journal had earlier reported that Chinese engineers had flown into Malaysia in early March carrying suitcases filled with hard drives.
It said they sought to build AI models in Malaysian data centres containing servers using Nvidia chips.
The Biden administration had put in place curbs on the export of sophisticated AI chips. Malaysia was in a second tier of countries subject to restrictions, with caps on the number of chips that it could receive.
The Trump administration has since scrapped the curbs, but it has issued guidance reminding US companies that if they have knowledge that an AI chip used in Chinese AI model training will be used for a weapon of mass destruction then a licence may be required.
Order Against Telegram
Meanwhile, Malaysia’s communications regulator on Thursday said it has secured a temporary court order against Telegram and two of its channels for allegedly sharing content in violation of national laws.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission said it sought the court order against Telegram following the platform’s “serious failure to address content that has been repeatedly reported to it”.
It said the content on the two channels on Telegram, named “Edisi Siasat” and “Edisi Khas”, had “the potential to undermine public trust in national institutions and disrupt societal harmony”.
A Malaysian high court granted an interim injunction order to halt the spread of the harmful content and prevent the re-publication of similar content, the commission said. It did not describe the nature of the harmful content.
Telegram did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Fair Opportunity To Present Defence
“Telegram will be given a fair opportunity to present its defence in line with the principles of justice and fundamental rights”, the commission said in a statement.
In January, Malaysia introduced a new social media law requiring social media platforms and messaging services with more than 8 million users in Malaysia to obtain a licence or face legal action. The law is aimed at tackling rising cybercrime following a sharp increase in harmful social media content.
Malaysian authorities deem online gambling, scams, child pornography and grooming, cyberbullying and content related to race, religion and royalty as harmful.
(With inputs from Reuters)
