Technology

Oracle to Invest More Than US$6.5 Billion in AI and Cloud Computing in Malaysia

Published

5 hours ago

October 2, 2024

Oracle plans to open a cloud region in Malaysia, including 150+ infrastructure and SaaS services, to help boost the country’s digital economy and drive AI-fueled innovation

Organizations across Malaysia can accelerate AI innovation with Oracle Cloud Infrastructure’s high performance and built-in security, powerful data, and distributed cloud capabilities

Upcoming cloud region to extend OCI’s footprint in Asia Pacific to 12 public cloud regions

AUSTIN, Texas and KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Oct. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — To meet the rapidly growing demand for its artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud services in Malaysia, Oracle today announced plans to invest more than US$6.5 billion to open a public cloud region in the country. The upcoming cloud region will enable Oracle customers and partners in Malaysia to leverage AI infrastructure and services and migrate mission-critical workloads to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).

The planned public cloud region will help organizations in Malaysia modernize their applications, migrate all types of workloads to the cloud, and innovate with data, analytics, and AI. Customers can have access to OCI Generative AI Agents with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) capabilities; accelerated computing and generative AI services to help keep sovereign AI models within country borders; and OCI Supercluster, the largest AI supercomputer in the cloud—orderable with up to 131,072 NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs with NVIDIA ConnectX-7 NICs for RoCEv2 networking or NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 rack solutions using liquid cooling and NVIDIA Quantum-2 InfiniBand networking. In addition, 150+ services, including Oracle Autonomous Database, HeatWave MySQL Database Service, Oracle Cloud VMware Solution, OCI Kubernetes Engine, and Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications Suite will also be available, offering customers infrastructure, platform, or SaaS services.

“We warmly welcome Oracle’s US$6.5 billion investment in Malaysia, which represents yet another expansion of their 36-year footprint in Malaysia,” said YB Senator Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, minister of investment, trade and industry (MITI), Malaysia. “This investment will empower Malaysian entities, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, with innovative and cutting-edge AI and cloud technologies to enhance their global competitiveness. It is also a significant step towards realising the country’s New Industrial Master Plan’s ambitious vision of creating 3,000 smart factories by 2030. Oracle’s decision to establish a public cloud region in Malaysia underscores Malaysia’s infrastructure readiness, and its growing position as a premier Southeast Asian destination for digital investments.”

“Malaysia offers unique growth opportunities for organizations looking to accelerate their expansion with the latest digital technologies,” said Garrett Ilg, executive vice president and general manager, Japan & Asia Pacific, Oracle. “Our multi-billion dollar investment affirms our commitment to Malaysia as a regional gateway for cloud infrastructure as well as a comprehensive suite of SaaS applications deployed within Malaysia.”

“Rapidly growing demand for AI services prompts calls for more data centers that store large amounts of data and computational power to train and deploy AI models,” said Franco Chiam, vice president, cloud, data center and future digital infrastructure, Asia Pacific, IDC. “According to IDC FutureScape ‘The Infrastructure and Cloud Impact 2024 Predictions’, Malaysia’s public cloud services market is expected to grow by 27.2 percent CAGR from 2022 to 2027. The upcoming Oracle cloud region in Malaysia, therefore, signals the country’s potential to become a hub for technological innovation and growth in Southeast Asia.”

OCI Provides Customers with the Latest AI Infrastructure Offerings and a Resilient and Scalable Cloud Foundation Running Within Malaysia’s Borders

Oracle is the only hyperscaler capable of delivering AI and a full suite of 150+ cloud services across public, dedicated, and hybrid cloud environments, anywhere in the world. OCI’s unique cloud architecture enables Oracle to launch more public cloud regions faster by starting with an optimal footprint and scaling as needed, and deploy dedicated cloud regions with hyperscale cloud services inside customer data centers. This approach helps meet the needs of all countries and markets without compromising cloud capabilities, while also providing the consistent performance, SLAs, and global pricing for which OCI has become known.

With the planned public cloud region in Malaysia, customers and partners can gain low-latency access to cloud services to help them derive better value from their data and securely store data and run applications to help address regulations and requirements for data residency within Malaysia. In addition, OCI’s sovereign AI capabilities provide customers with increased control over where they locate their data and computing infrastructure and how they manage it. As a result, customers can achieve AI sovereignty by gaining the assurance that their use of AI is aligned with digital sovereignty frameworks.

Customers in Malaysia Welcome the Upcoming Public Cloud Region

Several NVIDIA AI infrastructure services will be available to customers, including NVIDIA AI Enterprise, NVIDIA Omniverse, and NVIDIA DGX Cloud.

“NVIDIA underpins the world’s largest AI models for training and inferencing, and Oracle’s continued expansion in Malaysia will help organizations across the country harness the power of AI,” said Dennis Ang, senior director, enterprise business (ASEAN and ANZ region), NVIDIA. “With the new Oracle Cloud Malaysia Region, customers in Malaysia will gain local access to NVIDIA’s accelerated, secure, and scalable platform for end-to-end AI development and deployment on OCI, helping accelerate the development of generative AI applications.”

Read the full release here.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/oracle-to-invest-more-than-us6-5-billion-in-ai-and-cloud-computing-in-malaysia-302264649.html

SOURCE Oracle

Technology

CellPoint Digital Partners with PayU GPO, a Payment Service Provider Specialising in Emerging Markets

Published

5 mins ago

October 2, 2024

Travel merchants working with CellPoint Digital can access PayU GPO’s localised payment offerings and APMs, enhancing their regional expansion capabilities

LONDON, Oct. 2, 2024 /CNW/ — CellPoint Digital, the leading provider of payment solutions for the airline industry and a global pioneer of Payment Orchestration, today announced a strategic partnership with PayU GPO, a leader in global payments and innovative fintech and a premier payment services provider (PSP) across emerging markets.

The partnership will increase the payment options available to travel merchants that work with both companies, enabling more seamless entry into new regions with PayU GPO’s localised offerings and alternative payment methods (APMs). PayU GPO operates across over 50 emerging markets, with a strong presence in Central and Eastern Europe, Africa, and Latin America.

Its expertise will extend CellPoint Digital’s capacity to support travel merchants in expanding their regional footprints with greater ease and efficiency. CellPoint Digital merchants have already committed to using PayU GPO, and integrations are underway.

Through the partnership, merchants will benefit from the APM Hub serving as a centralised hub for contracting and onboarding, whilst gaining access to PayU GPO’s streamlined services, high approval rates, and swift payment processing.

Expanding Access to Alternative Payment Methods

Crucially, CellPoint Digital’s merchants will, through a single integration, gain access to various market-specific options offered by PayU GPO, including alternative payment methods (APMs), which are popular in emerging markets where traditional methods are less prevalent. In Latin America, for example, APMs accounted for 39% of the region’s digital commerce volume in 2022.

Merchants with a presence or plans to expand in the region can offer cash vouchers, a widely used APM in Latin America, through the PayU GPO partnership. According to CellPoint Digital’s Payments Come of Age report, 31% of regional airlines plan to offer vouchers as a payment option within the next 6-12 months, compared to the global industry average of 25%.

Similarly, CellPoint Digital merchants will be able to offer Colombian travellers without a credit or debit card the option to pay directly from their bank accounts, thanks to PayU GPO’s partnership with PSE, an established platform used by more than 26,000 businesses across Colombia.

Joining Forces to Unlock Growth in Emerging Markets

“CellPoint Digital is a perfect partner for us to establish a strong foothold in the aviation sector. We anticipate significant interest from its merchants, who see alternative payment methods (APMs) as a key to breaking into emerging markets, where our expertise lies,” said Michiel Knoester, Partner Manager EMEA at PayU GPO.

The Latin American airline sector has experienced a comparatively swift recovery, with IATA forecasting that 2024 will surpass 2023. PayU GPO’s platform, which offers one of the broadest selections of local and global payment methods, leverages the latest AI and fintech solutions to ensure a smooth checkout experience for customers worldwide. This simplified processing, combined with extensive support for APMs and CellPoint Digital’s leading Payment Orchestration platform, creates a powerful solution that will deliver tangible benefits to merchants across the travel sector.

“APMs are the future, particularly in Latin America and other high-growth emerging markets. PayU GPO has all the right credentials to help us expand APM offerings and enable our merchants to capitalise on localised payment solutions that better meet their needs,” added Andy Sale, Head of Partnerships at CellPoint Digital.

For more information about CellPoint Digital and its partnership with PayU GPO or to schedule an interview with a CellPoint Digital company executive, please contact Steven Osei at steven.osei@cellpointdigital.com.

About CELLPOINT DIGITAL
CellPoint Digital is a fintech leader in payment orchestration and optimisation. CellPoint Digital’s main solution is a powerful Payment Orchestration Platform that optimises digital payment transactions from cards or alternative payment methods and accelerates the deployment of new payment options. Merchants can easily scale their own payment ecosystem across the world, unify the customer payment experience across their website, mobile apps and other channels, optimise the routing of each transaction, increase conversion rates and minimise payment costs. CellPoint Digital has offices in Copenhagen, Dallas, Dubai, London, Miami, Pune and Singapore. Visit www.cellpointdigital.com to learn more.

About PayU GPO
For the last 20 years, PayU GPO has been a leading online payment service provider, operating in 50+ emerging markets in Latin America, Africa, and Eastern Europe, dedicated to creating cutting-edge financial services tailored to the needs of over 450,000 merchants and millions of consumers. PayU GPO is focused on empowering people through financial services and creating a world without financial borders where everyone can prosper.

As an online payment service provider, it deploys hundreds of payment methods and PCI certified platforms to process approximately 10 million payments every single day. It also specialises in innovative consumer and small business solutions that improve access to credit and banking services in markets that are underserved by traditional financial services providers. For more information, please visit https://corporate.payu.com.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cellpoint-digital-partners-with-payu-gpo-a-payment-service-provider-specialising-in-emerging-markets-302264643.html

SOURCE CellPoint Digital

Technology

Toshiba in Agreement with Rinko Bus and Drive Electro on Demonstration Project for Electric Bus with Super-Rapid 10-Minute Charging

Published

5 mins ago

October 2, 2024

Japan’s first e-bus operation on public road using pantograph charging
provides a robust solution that can be applied in towns and cities of Asian countries

TOKYO, Oct. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Toshiba Corporation has agreed with Kawasaki Tsurumi Rinko Bus Co., Ltd. (Rinko Bus) and Drive Electro Technology Co., Ltd. (Drive Electro Technology) to jointly study a demonstration project*1 to confirm the effectiveness of a super-rapid charging battery powered by a pantograph. The project is expected to start operation in November 2025, once the bus has been modified and the pantograph charging facility installed in the bus depot, and the bus will operate on a regular route along public roads in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo.

The project, the first of its kind on public roads in Japan*2, will demonstrate the feasibility of commercial operation of an e-bus charged by a pantograph. Rinko Bus will operate the service, and Drive Electro Technology will produce the pantograph charging system and convert the diesel bus to electric powered by Toshiba’s super-rapid charging SCiB™ rechargeable battery. The project will also verify the ability to reuse SCiB™. Used batteries installed in the pantograph charging system will be charged to minimize power consumption during peak demand, and used to supply power to the on-board battery via the pantograph.

While governments in China and Europe are providing support for e-buses as an environmental investment, total sales worldwide in 2023 were a low 50,000 units, a mere 3% of all bus sales*3. Long charging time and a limited number of chargers can impact vehicle operational efficiency, while the need to secure large charging spaces and install numerous charging facilities presents major barriers. These challenges are particularly significant for the adoption of e-buses in densely populated urban areas of Asia, where space is limited.

Toshiba will collaborate with Rinko Bus and Drive Electro Technology to make full use of each company’s capabilities, to promote the demonstration project as a cutting-edge initiative and to take the lead in introducing the system into Asia, and to work toward advancing carbon neutrality and sustainable growth for society as a whole.

*1 This project utilizes the results of the demonstration project, “International Demonstration Project of Energy Consumption Efficiency Technology and System Demonstration / Project to Demonstrate 10-Minute Charging of Large EV Buses (Malaysia)” supported by NEDO

*2 Source: Rinko Bus, Toshiba and Drive Electro

*3 Global EV Outlook 2024 – Analysis – IEA

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SOURCE Toshiba Corporation

Technology

Skanska builds data center in Arizona, USA, for USD 241M, about SEK 2.5 billion

Published

5 mins ago

October 2, 2024

STOCKHOLM, Oct. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Skanska has signed a contract with an existing client to build a data center in Arizona, USA. The contract is worth USD 241M, about SEK 2.5 billion, which will be included in the US order bookings for the third quarter of 2024.

The project consists of a single-story data center, totalling approximately 22,800 square meters (245,000 square feet).

Work is underway and is scheduled for completion in the third quarter of 2026.

For further information please contact:

Daniela Arellano, Communications Director, Skanska USA, tel +1 213-317-4977

Andreas Joons, Press Officer, Skanska Group, tel +46 76 870 75 51

Direct line for media, tel +46 (0)10 448 88 99

This and previous releases can also be found at www.skanska.com.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/skanska/r/skanska-builds-data-center-in-arizona–usa–for-usd-241m–about-sek-2-5-billion,c4045647

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/95/4045647/3033544.pdf

20241002 US data center Arizona