THE OPENING OF THE FIRST COMMON GROUND CO-WORKING SPACE IN PENANG

SPEECH BY CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG 

FOR THE OPENING OF THE FIRST COMMON GROUND CO-WORKING SPACE IN PENANG

COMMON GROUND, MOULMEIN RISE, PULAU TIKUS, PENANG
13TH FEBRUARY 2019, 6.15PM

Good evening distinguished guests, members of the media, ladies and gentlemen. A very Happy Chinese New Year to everyone.

Firstly, I would like to thank the teams from Common Ground and Belleview Group for having me here today at the launch of the Common Ground Penang in Moulmein Rise.

I’m very thrilled that Common Ground had chosen to expand to Penang for its first Malaysian venue outside of the Klang Valley. This makes it to a total 12 branches of Common Ground Co-Working Space in Malaysia.

In the past few years, we have seen the tech and startup ecosystem in Malaysia thriving rapidly. This has paved the way for Penang to become a more innovative, digital, and startup-friendly city.

Ever since Intel and Bosch set up operations at the Bayan Lepas area in the 1970s, Penang has earned its Silicon Island moniker - taking after Silicon Valley in the U.S. One of the main reasons these giant organisations chose to set up their operations in Penang was because of the establishment of a free trade zone – now called the Free Industrial Zone in Bayan Lepas.

Today, there are about 300 multinational corporations which have established their offices here, and concurrently we are also seeing a rise in the number of SMEs, as well as startups, being founded up in Penang.

According to the Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER 2018) by Startup Genome, the Malaysian startup ecosystem lacks connectivity in relationships between founders with ideas, experts with information, and investors with capital.

That’s why it’s great that companies, like Common Ground, provide a space for these three cornerstones to collaborate. As we have been told many times by philosophers, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” And it is true – when put together, these three components can create something more powerful than themselves.

From startups to SMEs, to even larger corporations, a dynamic co-working platform will aid in fostering the connection and synergy required for the innovative growth of the business ecosystem.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The younger generation today do not like the idea of working in a confined space anymore, clocking in at 9am and out at 6pm. They love to be mobile and the freedom to work wherever they can. This new mindset among our younger workers have resulted in more co-working spaces now operating in Penang. These new working spots are frequented by start-up entrepreneurs, freelancers or anyone who wishes to have a cozy and comfortable environment to do research, study or having discussion.

From the perspective of the Penang State Government, realizing knowledge is just a click away and the need to be ahead with technology, we have set up the Penang Digital Library, the first library in Malaysia without a single book. The library which opens 24 hours every day, has received overwhelming response and this had led to the opening of Penang Digital Library Phase 2 just a fortnight ago.

The launching of Common Ground Penang today could not have come at a better time – Penang aims to be part of the Industry 4.0 Transformation, which revolves around big data analytics, e-commerce, crowdsourcing, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things. The opening also supports the state’s Penang2030 vision I launched August last year.

The emerging infrastructure and business market here are indications that Penang is ready to become Malaysia’s next business nexus.

We are very excited to have Common Ground here in Penang! Our main goal is to enrich and connect the vibrant community here, and we believe that Common Ground shares that same vision.

We hope for the business community here in Penang to grow their network and enjoy this beautiful and collaborative space.

We look forward to seeing what 2019 will bring for Penang!

Thank you.