By Fuad Nizam
PAGOH: Mindmatics Sdn Bhd is set to strengthen Malaysia's defence technology and cybersecurity capabilities through a strategic collaboration with Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM).
The partnership was signed at a ceremony at the Pagoh Higher Education Hub Convention Center on Oct 14. It includes a joint project to enhance the precision of Mindmatics' CAMAR radar system under an Industry Matching Program (IMaP) grant worth RM110,800. The collaboration also involves the development of a radio communication monitoring system and Cyber Range training programs for UTHM students and staff.
The Mindmatics partnership is among UTHM's 17 collaborations with industry partners, valued at more than RM1.5 million.
The tie-ups include collaborations on research, innovation, and professional training in defence electronics and cybersecurity.
Mindmatics director Abdul Wahab Sulaiman said the collaboration with UTHM was a vital step towards reducing Malaysia's dependence on foreign technology and building a sustainable national capability.
"In the defence sector, we realise that many of the technologies we use rely on foreign countries.
"The current situation no longer allows that to continue. Whether we like it or not, we must develop our capabilities — by hook or by crook," he said.
Wahab said that through the Cyber Range collaboration with the university, institutions like UTHM can play a crucial role in producing cyber professionals to meet Malaysia's demand for 30,000 to 35,000 of these personnel.
"If UTHM can produce 5,000 cyber operators a year, it would make a huge difference. Cyber warfare today is not just about infiltration — even influence and misinformation campaigns can have a major impact," he said.
He said Mindmatics aims to leverage university expertise and research capabilities to strengthen its innovation ecosystem and align local technological development with international standards.
"The defence sector is moving towards Cyber Electromagnetic Activity (CEMA), and our collaboration with UTHM can evolve into a model similar to what Oulu University in Finland or Stanford University in the US, where academia became a true innovation arm for industry," he said.
UTHM board of directors chairman Datuk Seri Ibrahim Ahmad, who officiated the ceremony, said such partnerships were crucial in ensuring universities remained connected to real industry needs.
"At the university, we are not merely focused on producing output, but also on achieving outcomes that benefit society and the nation," he said.
He added that universities must not exist in isolation but serve as people-oriented institutions that provide graduates with dignified career pathways and fair remuneration.
"I see this strategy, spearheaded by the Faculty of Engineering Technology and its industry partners, as highly commendable because we must continue to develop collaboration models that enable universities to act as technology providers and strategic partners to industry," he said.