KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): Shamsul Izhan Abdul Majid, the chief technology and innovation officer (CTIO) at the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), has been appointed as the head of the National Artificial Intelligence Office (NAIO).

In an interview with DigitalEdge on Tuesday, Digital Minister Gobind Singh said Shamsul will lead initiatives to harness AI to accelerate economic growth, enhance public services and ensure ethical and responsible AI implementation across sectors.

Under Budget 2025, RM10 million has been allocated to the NAIO, which will be launched on December 12. Tasked with driving AI adoption in Malaysia, the NAIO will focus on developing AI policies and drafting legislation to support its implementation.

Through the NAIO, the Ministry of Digital hopes to also accelerate AI-related initiatives to achieve the government's goals, which include the AI Technology Action Plan (2026-2030) as well as to expedite AI adoption in key areas sectors.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Shamsul brings over a decade of entrepreneurial and technological expertise, from working with geographic information systems (GIS) to spearheading digital transformation initiatives.

At MCMC, Shamsul was responsible for an array of digital products and worked closely with C-Level executives and the board to establish and drive the commission's technology innovation vision and executed it across the telecommunication, broadcasting, postal courier and digital signature domains.

In the three years that he served the MCMC, Shamsul led technology-focused divisions, delivering innovative digital products such as AI productivity tools with guardrails, the AI Code of Ethics, metaverse for staff on boarding and the Jendela Map, which won the OpenGov 2023 Recognition of Excellence Award.

He also spearheaded initiatives like the National Address System (NAS), STAM for the broadcasting industry, and Parcel Analytics for data-driven logistics. His projects earned international recognition, including an award at the Geospatial World Forum 2024.

Shamsul was instrumental in 5G enterprise adoption, digital payments (MCMCPay) and digital transformation initiatives like the AI Service Disruption Dashboard. Named GovInsider Digital Leader of the Year 2024, he contributes to national committees on AI, Standards and intelligent transport systems.

Before joining MCMC in 2021, Shamsul served as the chief technology and innovation officer at PLUS Malaysia while simultaneously leading TERAS Teknologi as its CEO, overseeing Malaysia's largest electronic toll collection system provider, including RFID, SmartTAG and Touch 'n Go lane infrastructure.

From 2014 to 2017, he held several positions at Pos Malaysia. First as a consultant he established the Digital Transformation Framework and led the development of its first mobile app, E-Poslaju. Later, as head of e-commerce, he founded the pioneering e-commerce business unit and implemented Pos Malaysia's e-commerce strategy, expanding its domestic and regional reach.

Shamsul began his career in Melbourne, Australia, where he bootstrapped Ennoble Consultancy (EC), a company specialising in enterprise GIS and mobile solutions. EC earned recognition with the Multimedia Victoria Australia iAward for Industrial Innovation in 2009 and the Spatial Science Institute Australia Excellence Award in 2008 for innovative Cloud-GIS solutions developed for Hume City Council and the University of Ballarat.

He holds a Bachelor's degree in Geomatics Engineering and a Master of Science from the University of Melbourne.