KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 — A member of the Dewan Negara today proposed that more Public Universities should be involved in providing courses in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI), in line with the development of the technology that is expected to fundamentally transform the employment landscape in the future.
Senator Datuk Sivarraajh Chandran said that the increased involvement of higher education institutions would create a broader space for efforts to produce experts who can help the country face the challenges of change and development in AI technology.
Referring to a study by the Ministry of Human Resources estimating that 4.5 million workers in the country are at risk of job loss by 2030 due to AI and Machine Learning (ML), he said that offering more courses in the field of AI could reduce that risk.
“Even though most of these vulnerable jobs fall into the category of semi-skilled and unskilled jobs, we cannot underestimate this development at all because it involves the livelihood of the people,” he said.
He made these remarks while debating the Supply Bill 2024 in Dewan Negara today.
In welcoming the government’s initiative to establish the country’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) Studies Centre, namely the Faculty of Artificial Intelligence at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), to develop talent in this technology, he said that the effort should be intensified with the involvement of more public higher education institutions offering this field.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, when tabling the Budget 2024, announced the establishment of the country’s first AI Studies Centre at UTM with an initial allocation of RM20 million.
Sivarraajh said that the participation of more educational institutions offering AI studies could convince investors in the industry to invest in the country due to the ability to provide a credible talent pool that meets the demands of the job market.
— Bernama
