Shahelmey (right), John (centre) and Raja Azmi during the launch gimmick of Gamuda AI Academy Sabah.

KOTA KINABALU (July 1): Sabah has made a significant leap into the digital age with the launch of its very own Gamuda AI Academy, the first of its kind in East Malaysia and only the second nationwide.

The Sabah branch of the academy is located at the Sabah State Library and has already welcomed its inaugural batch of 30 trainees. The first Gamuda AI Academy was launched in Kuala Lumpur in October last year.

The launch ceremony here was officiated by Deputy Chief Minister III cum Works Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya, and attended by Gamuda Berhad Group Chief Digital Officer John Lim Ji Xiong and Raja Azmi, Head of Strategic Initiatives for Public Sector, Southeast Asia at Google Cloud.

Speaking to reporters after the event on Tuesday, Shahelmey lauded the collaboration between Gamuda and Google, with support from the Sabah Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, as a timely initiative in addressing the growing demand for Artificial Intelligence (AI) skills.