• Sunway Group launches Sunway Innovation Labs to encourage development of the start-up ecosystem in Malaysia.

• Sunway Innovation Labs is a not-for-profit partnership involving Sunway University, Sunway Group and Sunway Ventures.

By the year 2020, the Ministry of Higher Education estimates that 15% of Malaysian students will venture into entrepreneurship while they are still studying in institutions of higher learning, with 5% hoping to become entrepreneurs upon graduation.

To better equip student entrepreneurs, Sunway Group recently launched the Sunway Innovation Labs (Sunway iLabs), a unique not-for-profit partnership involving Sunway University (Sun U), Sunway Group and Sunway Ventures.

Through Sunway iLabs, Sun U students can apply their talent and technical expertise to growth hack Sunway Group’s 12 business units.

During the launch of Sunway iLabs, various Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) exchanges took place involving MaGIC as well as iLabs’ corporate partners Grab and Young Outliers, a Silicon Valley-based company that designs and runs entrepreneur camps.

“iLabs will drive Sunway’s growth for the decades ahead and identify sunrise industries for us to invest in, bringing together the collective talent, financial muscle and experience of Sunway University, Sunway Group and Sunway Ventures to a single collaborative space,” said Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Jeffrey Cheah AO, Founder and Chairman of Sunway Group.

MoUs signed under Sunway iLabs initiative:

Sunway University and Grab

• Internships, talks and knowledge sessions by Grab for Sun U students
• iLabs as Grab’s incubator for new ideas and experimental services
• Green campaigns, and social responsibility programmes for needy students
• Special car leasing and rental rates for Sunway students joining Grab
• Sun U scholarships for disadvantaged Grab drivers, and special bursaries for Grab employees to pursue graduate programmes at Sun U
• Grab and Sunway will collaborate to resolve traffic and parking challenges in Sunway, as well as organising entrepreneurship projects and hackathons

Sunway Ventures and MaGIC

• Sunway to offer industry advisory or mentorship support to relevant MaGIC start-up communities, run innovation programmes
• MaGIC will assist Sunway to connect with entrepreneurs and eco-system players locally and regionally, be a strategic partner to Sunway’s corporate innovation initiatives, and advise in Sunway’s entrepreneurship programme design

Sunway Education Group and Young Outliers

• Young Outliers management to deliver talks, mentor and attend knowledge sharing sessions (online or offline) for iLabs via bootcamps, accelerator programmes, innovation challenges, and business idea competitions
• An annual immersion trip to Silicon Valley for entrepreneurs from the iLabs accelerator programme
• Sunway to host an entrepreneurship summer camp