[This is a sponsored article with Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI).]
Malaysian technology companies will soon be able to bring our innovations to international markets, specifically Central Asia, thanks to a new partnership with Kazakhstan.
This was formalised just yesterday (November 4, 2026) through a tripartite Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) with Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI), the Malaysia Smart Cities Alliance Association (MSCA) and the Alatau City Authority Special Management Organization (SMO), this will open doors for local firms to test technologies, explore market opportunities, and commercialise solutions in Kazakhstan.
The partnership was highlighted at the Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC) 2026 in Barcelona, Spain, where representatives from MRANTI and Alatau City Authority held a bilateral engagement to discuss its implementation.
Through this, we’ll have an established two-way innovation corridor between Malaysia and Kazakhstan, giving innovators from both countries opportunities to test their technologies in real-world environments, and explore potential markets.
Under the partnership, both countries will explore opportunities to test and validate emerging technologies with practical applications for urban communities. These include artificial intelligence (AI), smart city solutions, urban digital twins, autonomous mobility, and drone technologies.
These solutions have the potential to improve how cities manage public infrastructure, mobility, energy consumption and essential urban services.
For Malaysian innovators, access to Alatau City’s emerging smart city ecosystem could provide an opportunity to demonstrate our technologies in a different operating environment, gain insights into foreign market requirements, and establish relationships with potential international partners.
Vice versa, this partnership will enable innovators from Kazakhstan to explore Malaysia’s technology testing and validation ecosystem, with the possibility of establishing connections with industry partners in the wider ASEAN market.
“Innovation cannot reach its full potential if it remains confined to the market where it was developed. The collaboration with Alatau City Authority SMO creates opportunities for Malaysian innovators to test and validate their technologies in new environments, while establishing pathways for market access beyond ASEAN,” said Ahmad Rizal Azwir, Lead, National Technology and Innovation Sandbox (NTIS), MRANTI.
“Through NTIS’ international arm, the Global Testbed & Sandbox Alliance (GTSA), we aim to connect real-world testing environments across borders, reduce barriers to technology adoption and accelerate the journey from innovation to commercialisation. Ultimately, our focus is on ensuring Malaysian technologies have the opportunity to compete, scale and create value in international markets.”
The Alatau City collaboration is part of these efforts to help homegrown technologies gain exposure to international markets and move closer to commercial adoption.
Fun fact: NTIS is an initiative under MOSTI, with MRANTI serving as its Lead Secretariat alongside key agencies, including MIMOS, Futurise and the Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC). In this capacity, MRANTI coordinates the implementation of NTIS, to support its broader mandate of accelerating technology commercialisation by helping innovations progress from development towards market readiness and adoption.
Bayan Konirbayev, Chief Digital & AI Officer of Alatau City Authority, echoed a similar sentiment on the importance of international collaboration in advancing smart city development and technology adoption.
“We see strong potential for Malaysian technology companies to contribute to Alatau City’s development, while opening new pathways for innovators from Kazakhstan to access markets and establish partnerships in Southeast Asia,” he said.
As part of the bilateral engagement, the Alatau City Authority SMO delegation was also introduced to several Malaysian technology solutions showcased at the MRANTI Pavilion during SCEWC 2026.
The technologies covered areas including smart city solutions, AI and data analytics, autonomous mobility, green energy and smart infrastructure.
Through partnerships like this, MRANTI hopes to give Malaysian innovators greater access to international markets, while creating opportunities for homegrown technologies to be commercialised and contribute to the country’s innovation-driven economy.
Featured Image Credit: MRANTI
