Sunway Group, a prominent Malaysia-based conglomerate, has announced a strategic partnership with Deeptech Labs, a venture capital (VC) fund and deeptech-specific accelerator based in Cambridge, UK. The collaboration facilitated through Sunway’s innovation arm, Sunway Innovation Labs (Sunway iLabs), aims to foster synergies in deep tech and catalyze breakthroughs in net zero technologies. The partnership will also provide startups from the UK with unparalleled opportunities to access the thriving Southeast Asian market, as stated by Deeptech Labs in a recent statement.
Miles Kirby, Chief Executive Officer of Deeptech Labs, emphasized their focus on attracting sector experts, investors, and founders working to solve some of the world’s greatest challenges through deep tech solutions. He believes that the partnership between Sunway Group and Deeptech Labs will play a pivotal role in commercializing and accelerating the growth of net zero technologies.
By leveraging Sunway Group’s extensive ecosystem and resources, the collaboration aims to equip startups with the necessary tools and support to thrive in today’s highly competitive landscape. Matt van Leeuwen, Chief Innovation Officer of Sunway Group and Director of Sunway iLabs, highlighted Cambridge’s advanced deep tech ecosystem, driven by world-class talent, substantial intellectual property, and successful tech companies.
The partnership aligns with Sunway Group’s Net Zero Lab initiatives, which leverage technology and innovation to accelerate the organization’s ambition of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Van Leeuwen expressed the firm’s dedication to developing sustainable solutions, thereby propelling Malaysia’s journey toward a greener and more sustainable future.
Sunway iLabs’ Net Zero Lab focuses explicitly on renewable and efficient energy, food security, sustainable cities, and the circular economy. Participating startups will have exclusive opportunities to test and validate their solutions and products within Sunway’s thriving ecosystem.
Through cross-border innovation programs like the Net Zero Lab, startups from the UK market and beyond can leverage Sunway’s testbeds to pilot and localize their solutions, using this as a launch pad into the Southeast Asian market. Sunway City Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s first integrated green city, serves as the country’s most dynamic living laboratory, generating real-world sustainable solutions that contribute to the prosperity and progress of people and the planet.
Sunway Group has fully embraced and integrated the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals into its corporate strategy and practices. Last year, the group took a significant step towards sustainability by implementing an internal carbon-pricing framework, becoming the first corporation in Malaysia and among the first in Southeast Asia to introduce such a carbon reduction strategy.
Established in 1974, Sunway Group operates across 13 business divisions in over 50 locations worldwide. Committed to sustainable development and socio-economic progress, the group’s diverse businesses include core interests in real estate, construction, retail, hospitality, trading and manufacturing, leisure, healthcare, education, building materials, and real estate investment trust (REIT).
Launched in 2017, Sunway iLabs serves as the innovation arm of Sunway Group and Sunway University, fostering entrepreneurship and stimulating market-driven innovations to help entrepreneurs be more competitive in this rapidly changing environment. The firm maintains strong connections with the broader startup ecosystem in Malaysia and abroad through collaborators and strategic partnerships, enabling entrepreneurs to scale their businesses faster.
Deeptech Labs, founded by ARM, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Martlet Capital, Ewan Kirk, and the University of Cambridge, is a startup accelerator and VC fund focused on catalyzing success in the deep tech domain. Twice a year, its cohorts of startups are immersed in a robust network of successful entrepreneurs, expert practitioners, leading researchers, and deeptech organizations worldwide. The founding institutions and individuals are at the forefront of the Cambridge and global technology ecosystems.