Data centres and cloud account for nearly 44% of Malaysia's RM218.5b approved investments

The Malaysian Investment Development Authority says data centre and cloud-computing projects drew RM95.8 billion, nearly 44% of Malaysia's approved investments in the first half of 2026. According to The Edge, total approvals rose 11.7% year on year to RM218.5 billion as demand for AI computing power kept growing.

Key points

• Information and communications, which includes data centres and cloud, surged 68.2% to RM103.3 billion.
• Foreign investments rose 18.5% to RM126.9 billion, with the US the largest source at RM33.1 billion.
• Selangor led with RM70 billion, followed by Johor at RM59.4 billion.
• Mida is reviewing 227 proposals worth RM72.1 billion as at 10 August, and says the near-term pipeline includes AI infrastructure.

Why it matters for Malaysia

The numbers show how heavily Malaysia's investment story now leans on compute. That concentration makes questions about local value, energy and water all the more pressing.

Questions answered

How much of Malaysia's approved investment went to data centres in 1H2026?

Data centre and cloud-computing projects attracted RM95.8 billion, nearly 44% of the RM218.5 billion in total approved investments for the first half of 2026, according to Mida.

Which states attracted the most approved investment?

Selangor attracted the most at RM70 billion across 835 projects, followed by Johor at RM59.4 billion, Kuala Lumpur at RM26.6 billion, Penang at RM20.2 billion and Sarawak at RM10.8 billion.