Among the many initiatives in Malaysia to upskill the talent pool for the digital economy and help the country achieve its AI Nation target by 2030 is the US$1.05 million (RM4.3 million) Social Impact Agreement inked by Amazon Web Services (AWS) Malaysia Sdn Bhd and Exabytes Malaysia Sdn Bhd in January.
The two-year collaboration consists of two components: the NitroDegree in Applied Software Engineering, a diploma pathway for youth, and AWS re/Start, a cohort-based workforce development programme aimed at preparing Malaysians for entry-level cloud roles. Lessons are delivered through the Exabytes Centre of Cloud Excellence, with Forwardemy Sdn Bhd, which operates under the Forward College brand, as delivery partner.
What is notable about the programme is its focus on identifying participants from the underprivileged B40 group and M40 career switchers, to ensure more inclusive participation in one of the hottest areas of the economy: cloud, AI and digital infrastructure. This is not just a soundbyte statement. AWS and Exabytes promise a robust reporting mechanism to ensure transparency and monitor the social impact. Graduates meeting the standards set will be positioned for internships and full-time roles within Exabytes and its partner network.
“Malaysia’s digital growth will depend on whether more people can move into cloud and AI-related roles with confidence and employer-ready skills. Through our collaboration with Exabytes and Forward College, we are helping more Malaysians move from potential to employability in a fast-growing digital economy,” said Kirsten Gilbertson, Partner Organization Leader, AWS ASEAN.
She noted that a 2025 AWS-sponsored survey in Malaysia of 1,000 businesses revealed that some would be willing to increase a salary offer by over 30% for a candidate with strong AI skills.
The first sign of whether the programme can deliver on that promise came recently when the first AWS re/Start cohort celebrated its graduation at AWS Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur on June 27. Out of the first cohort of 128 learners, 72 graduated with 36 of them having also earned the AWS Cloud Practitioner certification, which is an additional assessment not part of AWS re/Start.
A critical metric of success however is employability and here more than 15% of the first cohort had already secured interviews or employment before graduation. The parties declined to share cleaner numbers as it is still early days for the graduates. However, Chan Kee Siak, founder and CEO of Exabytes, expects the number of job placements to grow, with Exabytes leading the way.
Exabytes has already made six job offers to graduates of the programme, said Chan, who sees strong demand across cloud, AI and cybersecurity roles. “We have quite a lot of vacancies needed in the space of cloud, AI and also cybersecurity,” he said.
The programme’s hiring partners, including Hiredly, AltShift, PAIX and Consurv Technic, were also present at the graduation ceremony to connect with graduates and explore recruitment opportunities.
For Chan, the early response reflects both the demand for training and the hunger among Malaysians to move into digital careers. “The response to the programme is quite overwhelming because when we launched (in January), we quickly received more than a thousand applications, and we had to stop receiving applications,” he said.
From 8 January to 18 June, the programme received 4,412 applicants. Of these, 972 learners entered the programme across four cohorts, with 739 from the B40 group and 171 from the M40 group.
Howie Chang, co-founder and chief executive officer of Forward College, said the structure of the programme is deliberately designed to go beyond classroom learning.
“This programme combines technical training with employability support in a very deliberate way. Learners are not only exposed to cloud knowledge, but also hands-on practice, career coaching and employer readiness,” he said.
According to Howie, Cohort 1 saw 128 participants enter the programme, with 20 dropping out. Cohort 2 (2 Mar – 30 May) had 271 participants, with 20 dropouts, and 140 graduating on 20 June. Cohort 3 (1 Apr – 27 June) had 341 participants, while the ongoing Cohort 4 (8 June to 5 Sept) has 232 participants.
Participants who complete the programme also receive an exam voucher, valid for six months, to take the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam. Cohort 3 is targeted to graduate in July.
One beneficiary of the programme is Aaron Leow Hong Zheng, a former IT executive from Ipoh who has secured a higher-paying Network Engineer role in Penang after completing the three-month AWS re/Start programme.
In his previous role, Aaron mainly handled support tasks. Occasionally, he helped a senior colleague on infrastructure work involving networks, servers and storage. It was here that he realised the gap between what he learned in college and what he encountered at work.
He saw AWS re/Start as a chance to build a more practical foundation. “I just feel like this is almost perfect for me because I can finally have more time to actually learn what is the basics of cloud,” he said.
Despite already having an IT background, Aaron found the programme challenging. “It’s quite intensive and I also find there are some concepts that are a little too hard.” Still, he regarded AWS re/Start as practical and useful in helping him move into a stronger technical role.
The AWS-Exabytes initiative also includes the fully sponsored NitroDegree in Applied Software Engineering, a two-year programme delivered by Forward College for B40 youth aged 18 to 30.
“It is a job guaranteed programme whereby we will train them for two years in three areas primarily in front-end, back-end and web application by AWS,” said Howie. “We also cover AI, data science and then mobile development.”
The programme covers full-stack development, networking and security, machine learning, Agile, UI/UX, Android and software entrepreneurship. It also includes an AWS Cloud Computing Fundamentals module.
Students will complete a three-month internship and, subject to performance, receive priority job placement with Exabytes or its partners. They will also earn an accredited Level 4 Diploma under the Department of Skills Development, Ministry of Human Resources.
“Every year we’ll have three intakes. We have started to enrol for our March intake this year, and we are starting another intake next month in July, and another in November,” Howie said.
As of now, 57 people have applied for NitroDegree, with 13 accepted. Of the recipients, seven are from the M40 group and six from the B40 group.
For Exabytes, the first graduation is an early proof point that industry-led training can be tied directly to employment outcomes.
“This first graduation matters because it shows that talent development can deliver measurable outcomes when industry, education and technology partners work together with a clear employment objective,” said Chan. “For us, success is not just about training completion, it is about opening real pathways into the digital economy for Malaysians who are ready to build new careers.”
The milestone comes as Malaysia’s digital economy continues to demand more skilled workers. By the end of Q3 2025, the country had recorded RM54.13 billion in approved Malaysia Digital investments, expected to create 21,815 high-value jobs, while digital exports reached RM6.8 billion across 2024 and the first half of 2025.
Applications for upcoming cohorts under the AWS-Exabytes cloud skills initiative remain open via the Exabytes CCoE website, with recruitment managed by Forward College. NitroDegree applicants must be Malaysians aged 18 to 30 with SPM, IGCSE or equivalent, with priority given to B40 applicants. AWS re/Start is open to Malaysians aged 18 and above, including fresh graduates and career switchers.
Full article by Digital News Asia.
