Cyberview Sets Forth Innovation As The Normative Ideal For Business Growth And Resilience

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Cyberview Sdn Bhd (Cyberview), the Tech Hub Developer of Cyberjaya hosted its third Tech Talk Webinar series for 2021 on how businesses can leverage innovation and R&D to navigate and prepare for the possibilities of an endemic. The panel discussion was themed, ‘The New Reality of an Endemic: Unlocking Post-Crisis Growth through Innovation’.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted people’s lives in many ways, from adjustments across daily routines to companies pivoting their strategies to meet changing consumer demands. The race is now on for businesses to seize the opportunities that arise from transforming market landscapes. Further to this, leading health experts and the World Health Organisation (WHO) also shared their views on the likelihood of COVID-19 becoming an endemic. To unlock post crisis growth, companies require a prolific focus on innovation.

The panel session focused on the realities of the looming endemic and how businesses can gain long-term advantages through innovation and R&D to remain resilient. The panellists were Aizat Rahim, Business Director, Finnext Capital Sdn Bhd; Ammar Zolkipli, Partner, Itxotic Sdn Bhd; and Shafinaz Salim, Head of Technology Hub Development Division of Cyberview Sdn Bhd.

During the session, Shafinaz highlighted, “Businesses now need to pivot and scale rapidly. They need access to R&D&C to turn their business ideas into lucrative offers. Cyberjaya is well-positioned as a sandbox with its living lab capabilities and infrastructure that can facilitate R&D and innovation opportunities for businesses, including larger industries. The city’s thriving ecosystem also offers companies cross-collaboration opportunities between various technology areas like Smart Mobility, Smart Healthcare and Digital Creative for the creation of even more new possibilities.”

Aizat zoomed in on the digitalisation journey for companies, “Business strategies have changed substantially where companies now need to identify the fundamentals of their commerce to be able to adapt to the endemic. Digitalisation is now compulsory for businesses to stay afloat as we see industries across the spectrum observe and embrace this shift progressively. For traditional businesses, especially those with less constraints in terms of regulations are much quicker in adopting technologies and this shows that policies play a key role in enabling digital transformation.

“Before they move into analysing technology and innovation trends, companies must first strengthen their businesses continuity plans and look into cost-cutting measures as well as close monitoring of operational and revenue cycles. Essentially, businesses need to accommodate what their customers are looking for based on the industries they are fulfilling and ensure that digitalisation starts from within. One of the challenges among businesses is their hesitation in leveraging e-commerce and building their online presence. They need to be customer-centric to adapt and sustain their companies today.”

As a digital technology expert with vast experiences across global and regional companies, Ammar discussed the significance of digital application in industries such as manufacturing. He explained, “One of the biggest challenges for industrial operations is following restrictions and regulations. The adoption of technologies enables businesses to comply with SOPs as well as overcome other challenges that may rise from the shift in market demands. The rudiments of technology adoption include strong policies and long-term programmes to ensure local industries remain resilient in these changing times.”

As part of Cyberjaya’s new masterplan, Cyberview introduced a Collaboration Campus which is a designated area that will become the initial iteration of the development of the three technology clusters – smart mobility, smart healthcare and digital creative - in a single zone. The campus is unique as it is situated close to offices of key stakeholders such as the Cyberview HQ as well as Futurise – Cyberview’s subsidiary that oversees the National Regulatory Sandbox (NRS), and piloting facilities such as the Cyberjaya Malaysia Autonomous Vehicle (MyAV) Testing Route, the Drone Testing Zone and the 5G Open Lab for proof-of concept testing. This enables easy access and collaborative opportunities for businesses to scale up tech solutions throughout the entire life cycle right up to commercialisation.

The CoSpace Soft Landing Zone which is also a part of the campus is a crucial component serving as a new launchpad that is tailor made for startups, technology companies and ecosystem partners. The Zone serves as a temporary set-up for local businesses while they finalise their innovation strategies and long-term investment plans in Cyberjaya. It also offers ease of entry for foreign companies into Malaysia by allowing a faster, quicker, and convenient process for them to penetrate new markets within the country as well as the region.

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