Pictured (back, from left): Dato Dr. Anderson Tiong Ing Heng, General Manager of Sarawak Multimedia Authority, Datuk Fabian Bigar, Secretary General of the Ministry of Digital, Datuk Wilson Ugak Kumbong, Deputy Minister of Digital, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr. George Chan Hong Nam, Chairman of Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd and Jason Chia, COO and Co-Founder of 8nabler. Pictured (front): Encik Busiai bin Seman, CEO of Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd, and Mr Benjamin Foong, CEO of 8nabler.

KUCHING, 11 September 2026 — Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd (SAINS), a leading ICT systems integrator and solutions provider for the Sarawak Government and its agencies, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Malaysian Voice AI company 8nabler to explore the wider adoption of voice artificial intelligence (Voice AI) in ICT customer support services for SAINS customers and the public.

The MoU was signed during the Digital Government Exchange 2026 (DGX26) in Kuching, witnessed by SAINS Chief Executive Officer Mr Busiai Bin Seman and 8nabler Chief Executive Officer Mr Benjamin Fong, alongside representatives from both organisations. The collaboration aims to assess how Voice AI can help expand access to more accessible, responsive and round-the-clock digital public services.

8nabler's AI Contact Center booth showcases how the platform works: from voice input, to AI-powered reasoning, to real-time action bringing AI-powered public service conversations from Kuching to rural longhouses.

8nabler develops Voice AI infrastructure that integrates speech generation, reasoning models and telephone networks into a real-time system. Its core platform, Panacea, is designed to support secure and governed voice and chat deployments, with a strong focus on regional language requirements, including major ASEAN languages and everyday code-switching between languages.

The partnership could enable these capabilities to be deployed at a broader scale through SAINS’ extensive reach across state and federal agencies. The technology has already demonstrated its potential through a two-month proof of concept, during which 8nabler’s Voice AI independently handled 4,056 ICT support calls from civil servants without human assistance and automated 4,702 minutes of call time. Operating around the clock, including weekends and public holidays, the system was also able to understand requests delivered in a mixture of Bahasa Malaysia and English.

Voice AI could also help address some of the challenges faced by members of the public when accessing digital services, particularly those with limited internet access, disabilities, language barriers or lower levels of digital literacy. Rather than relying entirely on online forms or text-based platforms, voice interaction provides a more natural and accessible way for users to seek assistance.

By combining SAINS’ government technology capabilities with 8nabler’s conversational AI technology, the partnership will explore the potential for round-the-clock support in languages that citizens are already comfortable using. At the same time, human support teams can remain focused on complex, sensitive or specialised cases that require judgement and follow-up.

Pictured (L-R): ⁠Prof Dr Firdaus Abdullah, Rector, UiTM Sarawak, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr. George Chan Hong Nam, Chairman of Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd , Datuk Wilson Ugak Kumbong, Deputy Minister of Digital, Benjamin Foong, CEO of 8nabler, Jason Chia, COO and co-founder of 8nabler,  Encik Busiai bin Seman, CEO of Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd and Dato Dr. Anderson Tiong Ing Heng, General Manager of Sarawak Multimedia Authority

SAINS Chief Executive Officer Mr Busiai Bin Seman said digital services should make life easier for the public rather than create additional barriers. He noted that the proof of concept demonstrated how Voice AI could reliably manage routine ICT enquiries at scale, including outside normal operating hours, without placing additional pressure on existing teams.

8nabler Chief Executive Officer Mr Benjamin Fong highlighted that voice remains one of the most natural ways for people to seek assistance, while relying solely on human agents can make round-the-clock, multilingual support difficult and costly to scale. He stressed that digital government should not require every citizen to be familiar with mobile applications or online forms, adding that AI can help make voice-based services more accessible while maintaining governance, auditability and human escalation when required.

Under the MoU, SAINS and 8nabler will undertake a scoping and testing phase to identify potential use cases across application systems and services supported by SAINS. The initiative will also examine how Voice AI can complement existing digital and assisted-service channels.

The collaboration brings together SAINS’ experience in developing and operating government technology systems with 8nabler’s conversational AI capabilities, with both organisations seeking to explore more accessible, scalable and sovereign digital public services for Sarawak. The initiative could also support greater digital inclusion, particularly among rural communities and citizens who may be less comfortable with conventional text-based digital platforms.