TAR UMT Makes Quantum Leap in Digital Technology

Riding the digital wave that is sweeping every sector and industry in the age of Industry 4.0, TAR UMT is forging ahead with the establishment of the Centre of Excellence for Big Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (“CoE”) as well as Hero Esports Arena on 12 January 2022 to nurture future digital talents and strengthen its digital capability.

With the official launch of the CoE and Hero Esports Arena, TAR UMT is not only positioning itself at the forefront to embrace upcoming digital transformations but also reaffirm the institution’s Beyond Education philosophy, which empowers students to have a learning experience that goes beyond academic knowledge and skills.

With Big Data and AI merging into a synergistic relationship with big data being the fuel that AI runs on to develop new data-driven innovation, the CoE awarded by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (‘MDEC’) in 2019, aims to catalyse research activities related to big data and AI as well as contribute to the development of future talents in these fields. 

Equipped with 25 high-end workstations which are able to perform data processing, data analytics and run AI algorithms, the CoE has organised various activities/events and made remarkable contributions to the community of BDA and AI since its inception. These include five research projects that cover the use of BDA/AI in crop disease detection, building inspection, commercial decision making, portfolio risk analysis, guided learning, social media insight extraction and social distancing; the organisation of two international conferences; four workshops on data analytics using R and AI chatbot creation; obtaining five research grants as well as offering two micro-credential courses in artificial intelligence and introduction to data science. To date, the CoE has provided close to 80 internship placements in the fields of BDA/AI and has trained more than 500 students from TAR UMT and other Premier Digital Tech Institutions (‘PDTIs’).

Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei in his welcoming speech highlighted the higher purpose that the CoE is serving. “This CoE is an addition to our effort of building a research network that interconnects all research facilities in our Kuala Lumpur Main Campus as well as our branch campuses nationwide to support all research activities,” Prof Ir Dr Lee said.

Dr Sumitra Devi A/P Govinda Nair, Chief Digital Skills and Jobs Officer from MDEC who officiated the launch of the CoE also commended TAR UMT for its strategic initiatives in further developing big data analytics, artificial intelligence as well as esports.

“It’s really good to see this CoE which we have been looking forward to materialise, and it is fantastic to see TAR UMT taking a lead in the area of esports as well,” commented Dr Sumitra. “The idea of the CoE came about because it is meant to be a platform to bring institutions and industries together, and make it easier for industries to come on board to introduce more immersive and hands-on learning to students as well as the community.”

In recent years, esports has become an up and coming field with many Malaysians becoming professional online gamers. This has spurred many young Malaysians to consider taking up a career in professional gaming, given the promising future esports offers as outlined in the Ministry of Youth and Sports’ “Strategic Plan for Esports Development 2020 – 2025”.

Tapping into the promising growth potential of esports in Malaysia, the planning of setting up the Hero Esports Arena in TAR UMT’s Kuala Lumpur Main Campus started since 2019. As the only higher education institution campus in Malaysia to have an esports arena located in-campus to date, TAR UMT is in a unique position to organise esports tournaments and leagues in campus as well as extending invitations to other esports teams.

Located at TAR UMT’s Cyber Centre and managed by Agri Mind Sdn Bhd, Hero Esports Arena is slated to start operations in January 2022. Covering an area of 1686 square feet, the esports arena is able to accommodate 42 persons in the Gaming Zone, 6 persons in the VIP Zone and 1 person in the broadcasting room, allowing ample space for students to experience a real esports arena setting.

“I was also excited when I heard about the Hero Esports Arena here at TAR UMT. BDA and AI are hard core technologies which provide a strong foundation towards applications that we can build using it, but esports is something that is new edge and exciting. Esports in today’s world has evolved from just playing games. Now there is a whole value chain of job opportunities surrounding the esports industry, from developers to shoutcasters etc. With that said, I am equally excited to see what comes out of the esports arena as well as look forward to seeing how we can bring both the CoE and esports to even greater heights,” said Dr Sumitra.

“Aside from solely focusing on research and academics, TAR UMT’s Beyond Education philosophy aims to provide our students with a learning experience that stretches beyond a traditional classroom setting. With Hero Esports Arena, we are able to provide students with an avenue to nurture and enhance their skills and talents, and also provide them with real-life exposure in the field of esports,” added Prof Ir Dr Lee. 

Following the launch of the CoE and Hero Esports Arena, VIPs and guests were given a tour of the two facilities. Guests were also able to witness a friendly League of Legends (‘LoL’) match being played out live in Hero Esports Arena between two teams from TAR UMT’s Interactive Gaming Society (‘IGS’) enabling them to experience first-hand how esports matches are carried out in the venue and broadcasted over live channels.

A TAR UMT student participating in the first esports battle held at Hero Esports Arena, which featured a friendly match between TAR UMT IGS Committee Team and TAR UMT IGS Members Team where they battled each other in a match of League of Legends