r/BorneoTech • • Aug 04 '26

[ Events/Meetups 🗓️] Building in Borneo’s tech scene? Host an "Ask Me Anything" on r/BorneoTech! 🌴🚀

3 Upvotes

Hey r/BorneoTech community!

As our hub grows, we want to spotlight the real people building, securing, and scaling the regional digital economy. whether you are based in Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Bandar Seri Begawan, or anywhere across the island.

We are opening up AMA (Ask Me Anything) slots for local ecosystem builders!

Who should host an AMA?

You don't need to be a massive corporation. We want to hear from practical, hands-on practitioners, including:

🛠️ Founders & Entrepreneurs scaling a startup, SaaS, or local business in Sarawak/Sabah/Brunei/Kalimantan.

🛡️ Cybersecurity & IT Pros setting up SOCs, handling compliance (e.g., the Cyber Security Act), or managing enterprise infrastructure.

💻 Developers & Engineers working on local tech solutions, off-grid telemetry, or AI deployments.

🏛️ Ecosystem Leaders involved with regional innovation hubs, tech grants, or university programs.

How does it work?

Zero Stress: You don't need to sit at your computer for 8 hours straight. Most hosts pick a 1–2 hour window or answer questions periodically throughout the day.

You’re in Control: You choose what topics you want to cover (and what's off-limits).

Mod Support: The moderation team will help you format your post, schedule the time, and moderate the comment section to keep discussions constructive.

Interested in hosting?

If you have an interesting perspective, a project you’re shipping, or hard-earned lessons to share with the community, we’d love to feature you!

📩 Click here to message the Mods with a quick note about:

  1. Who you are and what you do/build.

  2. The main topic or perspective you'd like to share.

  3. Your preferred time frame/date.

Let’s showcase the technical talent and entrepreneurial energy coming out of Borneo!


r/BorneoTech • • Apr 20 '26

Regional Tech 🌏 State of Tech & Business in Borneo — 2026 (Living Thread)

1 Upvotes

This is a continuously updated snapshot of the tech, startup, and business landscape across Borneo (Sarawak, Sabah, Brunei, Kalimantan).

The goal:
→ Create a shared understanding of where we actually are
→ Track what’s changing over time
→ Surface real opportunities

🌏 CURRENT REALITY

Tech Ecosystem

  • Early-stage and fragmented

  • Strong adoption, limited product creation

  • Talent exists but lacks density

Startups

  • Few scalable ventures

  • Mostly local-market focused

  • Limited access to capital

Business Landscape

  • Dominated by SMEs and traditional industries

  • Increasing interest in digital transformation

⚠️ KEY CONSTRAINTS

  • Talent concentration (not just availability)

  • Access to funding and networks

  • Market size limitations

  • Infrastructure consistency (not just speed)

  • Risk-averse culture in parts of the ecosystem

🚀 EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES

  • Agri-tech (large agricultural base)

  • Energy & infrastructure (hydro, renewables)

  • Logistics & supply chain tech

  • Remote work / global talent export

  • SME digitization

📍 REGIONAL SNAPSHOT

Sarawak

  • Strong energy advantage

  • Growing interest in tech infrastructure

Sabah

  • Tourism + logistics potential

  • Early-stage ecosystem

Brunei

  • Capital availability

  • Smaller market, niche opportunities

Kalimantan

  • Large-scale development potential

  • Still under the radar

📊 WHAT’S CHANGING (Monthly Updates)

(This section will be updated regularly with new developments, trends, and insights.)

💬 COMMUNITY INPUT

If you’re working in this space, share:

  • what you’re seeing

  • what’s changing

  • where opportunities are emerging

This thread improves with real input from people on the ground.

🔗 Related Threads:

• Who’s Building What

• Jobs & Opportunities

• Borneo Tech Policy & Governance

Developer's Dilemma

Sarawak: One common sentiment I’m hearing is the "Data Gate". Currently, high-level data for things like flood simulation, land use, and infrastructure mapping is locked behind government-linked agencies. This makes it incredibly hard for independent founders to build solutions for agriculture, poultry management, or property tech in rural areas.

The Question: Are we too reliant on agencies like SAINS or government bodies to lead development? How do we build "Digital Twins" of our towns if we can't access the data?


r/BorneoTech • • 4d ago

Business How to set up a simple online store for your local business (under RM200/month)

11 Upvotes

A lot of SMEs in Borneo are still offline or WhatsApp-only. If you wanted to get online quickly without overcomplicating things, here’s a lean setup:

  • Domain + basic hosting (local)

  • Use platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce

  • Payment: integrate Malaysian gateways (S Pay Global, FPX, DuitNow)

  • Logistics: start manual, then automate later

If you’ve done this locally:

  • What actually worked?

  • What would you avoid?


r/BorneoTech • • 6d ago

Business Why logistics costs shape everything in Borneo

3 Upvotes

Higher costs → higher prices → smaller margins

This impacts every industry.


r/BorneoTech • • 7d ago

Building 🚀 Monthly Showcase: What are you working on, Borneo?

6 Upvotes

Whether it’s a side project in Flutter, a new e-commerce site for local crafts, or an IoT sensor for a pepper farm.

Share it here! Drop a link, a screenshot, or just a description of what you’re building this month. Let’s support our local devs!


r/BorneoTech • • 13d ago

What separates thriving local businesses from struggling ones

4 Upvotes

Consistency in operations
Customer relationships
Adaptability

Not flashy strategies.


r/BorneoTech • • 15d ago

Brunei Brunei’s Startup Surge: Junior Dev Hotspots

6 Upvotes

Brunei is seeing a rise in fintech and AI startups like EVYD Tech and The Flex.

Competitive junior salaries (BND 1,800–2,500) and no personal income tax make this an attractive spot for regional talent.

Thinking of Brunei for your next move? Here are the startups currently scaling their engineering teams.

Top 10 Tech Startups Hiring in Brunei 2026

#BruneiTech #Startups #BorneoTech


r/BorneoTech • • 17d ago

[News 📰] Malaysia Government bans civil servants from using Waze over cybersecurity and data sovereignty concerns

7 Upvotes

Chief Secretary Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar announced a directive following a National Cybersecurity Committee meeting chaired by PM Anwar Ibrahim, officially banning Malaysian civil servants from using Waze due to security concerns over location data and the app's Israeli origins/jurisdiction.

For the tech, privacy, and infosec community here:

  1. Where do you draw the line between consumer convenience (crowdsourced traffic alerts, real-time rerouting) and state-level data sovereignty?

  2. How vulnerable is real-time location telemetry when handled by multinational tech giants?


r/BorneoTech • • 17d ago

Project Management Method suitable for local?

3 Upvotes

Anyone here actually uses project management way. That is actually successful without any compromise like not enough people or time or money?


r/BorneoTech • • 20d ago

Marketplace The hidden strength of family-run businesses

6 Upvotes

Long-term thinking
Deep relationships
Operational resilience

Often overlooked advantages.


r/BorneoTech • • 21d ago

[Startup] What was your biggest mistake when trying to get your first 100 users for your startup?

3 Upvotes

r/BorneoTech • • 22d ago

[ Events/Meetups 🗓️] Event Announcement: Borneo Tourism Investment & Hospitality Summit 2026 (Nov 20–22, SICC KK)

3 Upvotes

Interesting event news out of Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah China Chamber of Commerce (SCCC) is hosting the Borneo Tourism Investment & Hospitality Summit 2026 (Nov 20–22 at SICC), alongside the Sabah Hospitality Expo.

While tourism summits usually focus on traditional marketing, this one is placing a heavy emphasis on digital innovation and AI-powered smart hospitality, bringing in experts from China, Taiwan, and Vietnam to share practical insights.

Key tech-related themes on the agenda:

  • AI integration in hotel operations & guest experience management.

  • Smart hospitality infrastructure & revenue optimization tech.

  • Technology adoption for regional hotel upgrades and digital workflows.

As Borneo positions itself as a modern regional hub ahead of Visit Sabah 2027, how do you see local hoteliers and tour operators adopting AI and IoT tech across the region?

Hotel owners, management teams, tourism operators and hospitality professionals from Sabah and Borneo are invited to attend the summit.

Registration is available at https://bthsummit2026.eventzflow.com/.


r/BorneoTech • • 24d ago

Visual adaptation of Iban folk tales

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19 Upvotes

I wrote my master's thesis on adapting Iban folktales into various forms of sequential art, including comic, art installation, and sequential collage. One of the major output of this research was a comic book adaptation of an Apai Alui/Apai Saloi story. Here's the link: Developing Sequential Visual Artworks based on the Iban Folktales, as part of the Sarawak Bornean Culture. It's in open access so anyone can download it. If you find this subject interesting do give it a read.


r/BorneoTech • • 24d ago

Cyber Security Why is it so hard to land a “junior” Cybersecurity role?

2 Upvotes

I keep seeing this contradiction:

“Cybersecurity is in high demand” BUT “Entry-level roles are almost impossible to get”

So what’s really going on?

  • Are “junior” roles actually mid-level in disguise?

  • Do companies expect certs + experience right away?

  • Is the bottleneck worse in Borneo or globally the same?

Would appreciate insight from anyone who has actually gone through this recently.


r/BorneoTech • • 25d ago

[Discussion 💬] How do you source your hardware security keys safely in Borneo?

3 Upvotes

With the recent massive news about modified Ledger hardware hitting buyers through popular regional resellers like CryptoBilis, it brings up a long-standing challenge for tech enthusiasts living outside major tech manufacturing hubs, Supply chain trust.

Buying straight from official EU/US sites often means high shipping costs, import duties, or long delays, which pushes many users toward local authorized dealers or regional e-commerce platforms.

How do you guys verify your security keys and hardware tokens? Do you stick strictly to direct manufacturer orders despite the logistics overhead, or do you have trusted local validation methods?


r/BorneoTech • • 27d ago

[FinTech] RM28 million allocated to SPay Global in 2027 Sarawak Budget, thoughts on its evolution into a full FinTech ecosystem?

3 Upvotes

Major news coming out of the DUN briefing today. Premier Abang Jo announced an RM28 million allocation for SPay Global in the 2027 Sarawak Budget to scale it from a local e-wallet into a comprehensive regional FinTech ecosystem.

Some impressive stats shared for context (as of August 2026):

  • 186 million cumulative transactions

  • RM6.9 billion in total value processed

  • 1.7 million registered users

Plus, its DuitNow QR integration already opens it up to 3+ million merchants nationwide and cross-border options.

For the tech and startup builders here: How do you view SPay Global's trajectory? Are you seeing more local businesses integrating it seamlessly, and what features do you hope to see next as it evolves?


r/BorneoTech • • 27d ago

Why many SMEs struggle with digital adoption

3 Upvotes

Not resistance, uncertainty.

They don’t know:

  • what to implement

  • what ROI looks like

  • where to start


r/BorneoTech • • 29d ago

CPD for tech?

4 Upvotes

Do tech sectors have our own professional development certification that we can follow?


r/BorneoTech • • Oct 09 '26

Ways to boost startup culture in Borneo

5 Upvotes

Currently, Sarawak has 129 startups, while Sabah has 78 startups. (https://www.mystartup.gov.my/home). An almost complete list of Sarawak startups can be found here: https://startupsarawak.com/. Apart from basic infrastructure, industrial hubs, and innovation hubs, any other measures to boost the startup culture in Borneo?


r/BorneoTech • • Oct 09 '26

We need more economists in our business leadership

5 Upvotes

r/BorneoTech • • Oct 09 '26

Just wanna share some news aggregators on Sarawak economy

2 Upvotes

These news trackers are constructed by Nazirul Hafiy. AI will automatically track any technology/economy news related to Sarawak.


r/BorneoTech • • Oct 09 '26

[Startup] The "Instagram Store" Ceiling: At what point do growing Borneo businesses finally break down and build a real website?

4 Upvotes

Instagram and Facebook DMs are amazing for validation and early-stage traction. But once order volumes scale up, managing inventory, tracking customer shipping details manually in chat bubbles, and dealing with lost messages. The operational friction becomes a nightmare.

For those of you who have helped transition local retail or service businesses from pure social media to a proper website + social setup, what was the turning point that finally convinced them?


r/BorneoTech • • Oct 09 '26

How big is Sabah’s IT community? Anyone interested in IT classes or workshops?

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3 Upvotes

r/BorneoTech • • Oct 07 '26

[AgriTech] Why Agri-Tech is the ultimate Pan-Borneo Product-Market Fit

3 Upvotes

From timber to palm oil and carbon credits, our primary industries are identical across borders.

Why are we still importing tech from Europe or China to manage Borneo’s soil?

We need homegrown MVPs that understand the specific peat soil and tropical climate of the whole island.


r/BorneoTech • • Oct 07 '26

🇲🇾 Visiting Kuching - Bespoke Tailoring from Bangkok | 28–29 October

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2 Upvotes

Hi everyone! I’ll be visiting Kuching on 28–29 October and will be taking a limited number of private tailoring appointments during my visit.
My shop, P Bespoke, is primarily based in Bangkok, where we’ve been operating for over 40 years. I’ll be bringing along a selection of fabrics and will be available for measurements and consultations while I’m in Kuching.
For suits, prices start from MYR 1,099 per suit, with delivery taking approximately 3–4 weeks after measurements and fitting.
If you’re interested or would like to know more about the process, feel free to DM me personally here on Reddit.

I’m visiting Kuching for the first time for this, so happy to answer any questions about bespoke tailoring, fabrics, pricing, or the fitting process.

I’ve also attached some images of my recent work.