A rapidly growing number of local innovators are getting a boost from the Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI) – in advancing their R&D and entering new markets especially in the last 12 months.
In 2023, the National Technology and Innovation Sandbox (NTIS) spearheaded by MRANTI enabled 27 Malaysian technology companies to commercialise 27 products, turning in RM 87.2 million in sales.
NTIS allows researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs with products at a mature technical readiness level to test their solutions and services in a live environment where regulations are relaxed – a critical step towards commercialisation. The sandbox also provides innovators with access to a network of funding partners, as well as 50 industry experts and ecosystem players.
“With strategic interventions to accelerate commercialisation, we have assisted more than 191 companies work through regulatory, technical and funding challenges, through 11 Sandbox programmes since 2020. These efforts increase our security of innovation supply and raises our stature as a high-income, high-technology economy,” said Datuk Wira Dr Hj. Rais Hussin Hj. Mohamed Ariff, CEO of MRANTI.
On improving regulatory support for innovators, MRANTI is working closely with the Medical Devices Association (MDA) and the Ministry of Health to shorten the process for products to safely and effectively go-to-market. Through the NTIS, several regulatory improvements have been made for the deployment of drones in the agriculture sector.
Companies in the sandbox stress-test many technologies, across various sectors. Over the past 3 years, drone and robotics as well as 4IR technologies, with 129 solutions designed to improve the agriculture, medical and healthcare and logistics sectors.
“One of the key learnings in the past three years in running the NTIS, is that there is a need to provide more avenues, scenarios and locations for experimentation, validation and testing for innovators who are at an earlier stage of their solution development. As such, MRANTI recently launched its Food Security Sandbox with the Northern Corridor Implementation Agency (NCIA) to allow technology providers to test their inventions in a live setting specifically to improve crop yield for paddy and fruits,” he said.
-HR HUB
