R&D labs in Malaysia
The 311 Institute tracks 37 R&D labs in Malaysia: 17 government, 15 research institutes, 3 corporate, 1 military and 1 university. Most are in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Bangi, and the leading organisations include Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Government of Malaysia and Malaysia government. Their main focus areas are biomedical engineering, molecular biology, biotechnology and mechanical engineering.
Part of the 311 Institute Global R&D Labs Directory. Compiled by Matthew Griffin. Last updated .
37labs
32organisations
13cities
36verified
All 37 labs
| Lab and organisation | Location | Type and sector | Focus | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petronas ResearchPetronas | Bangi, Malaysia | Corporate Energy and resources | Energy technology | 1993 |
| PETRONAS Research Sdn Bhd (Malaysia)PETRONAS Research Sdn Bhd (Malaysia) | Bangi, Malaysia | Corporate Environment and climate | Ocean Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Mechanics of Materials | 1992 |
| TNB Research (Malaysia)TNB Research (Malaysia) | Kajang, Malaysia | Corporate Industrials and manufacturing | Materials Chemistry, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Biomedical Engineering | 1993 |
| Centre of Excellence for Engineering and Technology (CREaTE)Centre of Excellence for Engineering and Technology (CREaTE) | Alor Gajah, Malaysia | Government Industrials and manufacturing | Mechanics of Materials, Civil and Structural Engineering, Polymers and Plastics | 2016 |
| Department of Mineral and Geoscience MalaysiaDepartment of Mineral and Geoscience Malaysia | Putrajaya, Malaysia | Government Environment and climate | Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law, Building and Construction, Geochemistry and Petrology | 2001 |
| Forest Research Institute MalaysiaGovernment of Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Government Agriculture and food | Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Molecular Biology, Plant Science | 1986 |
| Ministry of Energy Green Technology and WaterGovernment of Malaysia | Putrajaya, Malaysia | Government Environment and climate | Strategy and Management, Mechanics of Materials, Education | 2009 |
| Institut Penyelidikan Keselamatan Jalan Raya MalaysiaInstitut Penyelidikan Keselamatan Jalan Raya Malaysia | Kajang, Malaysia | Government Industrials and manufacturing | Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality, Civil and Structural Engineering, Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine | 2007 |
| Institut Penyelidikan Pembangunan Belia MalaysiaInstitut Penyelidikan Pembangunan Belia Malaysia | Putrajaya, Malaysia | Government Social sciences and humanities | Life-span and Life-course Studies, Sociology and Political Science, Safety Research | 2007 |
| Institut Sukan NegaraInstitut Sukan Negara | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Government Healthcare and life sciences | Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, Biomedical Engineering, Developmental and Educational Psychology | |
| Institut Tadbiran Awam NegaraInstitut Tadbiran Awam Negara | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Government Social sciences and humanities | Political Science and International Relations, Public Administration, Economics and Econometrics | 1972 |
| Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign RelationsInstitute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Government Social sciences and humanities | Political Science and International Relations, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Education | 1991 |
| Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB)Malaysia government | Bangi, Malaysia | Government Agriculture and food | Palm oil science | 2000 |
| MIMOSMalaysia government | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Government Technology | Semiconductors, AI | 1985 |
| Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development InstituteMalaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute | Kuala Selangor, Malaysia | Government Agriculture and food | Plant Science, Food Science, Biochemistry | 1969 |
| National Cancer InstituteMinistry of Health | Putrajaya, Malaysia | Government Healthcare and life sciences | Immunology, Oncology, Pathology and Forensic Medicine | |
| National Institutes of HealthMinistry of Health | Shah Alam, Malaysia | Government Healthcare and life sciences | Infectious Diseases, Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health, Modeling and Simulation | 2019 |
| Academy of Sciences MalaysiaMinistry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Government Environment and climate | Ecology, Plant Science, Modeling and Simulation | 1994 |
| Ministry of Science, Technology and InnovationMinistry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Putrajaya, Malaysia | Government Chemicals and materials | Biomaterials, Toxicology, Pollution | 1973 |
| National Institutes of Biotechnology MalaysiaMinistry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Kuala Selangor, Malaysia | Government Healthcare and life sciences | Biomaterials, Pollution, Biotechnology | 2012 |
| Centre for Defence and International Security StudiesCentre for Defence and International Security Studies | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Military Social sciences and humanities | Economics and Econometrics, Political Science and International Relations, Sociology and Political Science | 2009 |
| United Nations University-International Institute for Global HealthUnited Nations University | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | University Public policy and analysis | Finance, Economics and Econometrics, Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis | 2000 |
| Bio-Environmental Engineering Research CentreBio-Environmental Engineering Research Centre | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Research institute Industrials and manufacturing | Biomedical Engineering, Molecular Biology, Biotechnology | 2011 |
| Bio-Process and Molecular Engineering Research UnitBio-Process and Molecular Engineering Research Unit | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Research institute Healthcare and life sciences | Biotechnology, Molecular Biology, Biomedical Engineering | 2006 |
| Biofuel Research TeamBiofuel Research Team | Sungai Petani, Malaysia | Research institute Industrials and manufacturing | Biomedical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, General Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 2019 |
| Centre for Biofuel and Biochemical ResearchCentre for Biofuel and Biochemical Research | Seri Iskandar, Malaysia | Research institute Industrials and manufacturing | Biomedical Engineering, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment, Mechanical Engineering | 2010 |
| Fisheries Research InstituteFisheries Research Institute | Penang, Malaysia | Research institute Environment and climate | Oceanography, Ecology, Aquatic Science | 2002 |
| Fuel Cell InstituteFuel Cell Institute | Bangi, Malaysia | Research institute Multidisciplinary research | Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Materials Chemistry, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment | 2006 |
| Institut Marin BorneoInstitut Marin Borneo | Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia | Research institute Agriculture and food | Aquatic Science, Immunology, Ecology | 1995 |
| Institut Penyelidikan VeterinarInstitut Penyelidikan Veterinar | Ipoh, Malaysia | Research institute Healthcare and life sciences | Epidemiology, Agronomy and Crop Science, Microbiology | 1984 |
| Institute for Medical ResearchInstitute for Medical Research | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Research institute Healthcare and life sciences | Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health, Sociology and Political Science, Parasitology | 1900 |
| Malaysia Genome InstituteMalaysia Genome Institute | Kuala Selangor, Malaysia | Research institute Healthcare and life sciences | Biotechnology, Molecular Biology, Epidemiology | 2002 |
| Malaysian Cocoa BoardMalaysian Cocoa Board | Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia | Research institute Agriculture and food | Food Science, Horticulture, Biochemistry | 1989 |
| Malaysian Nuclear AgencyMalaysian Nuclear Agency | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Research institute Multidisciplinary research | Polymers and Plastics, Radiation, Mechanical Engineering | 1972 |
| National Heart InstituteNational Heart Institute | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Research institute Healthcare and life sciences | Surgery, Epidemiology, Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging | 1992 |
| Sabah ParksSabah Parks | Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia | Research institute Agriculture and food | Global and Planetary Change, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Aquatic Science | 1964 |
| UTM Construction Research CentreUTM Construction Research Centre | Johor Bahru, Malaysia | Research institute Industrials and manufacturing | Civil and Structural Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Building and Construction | 2012 |
R&D ecosystems in Malaysia
Organisations with labs in Malaysia
Other countries in Asia
- Afghanistan
- Bangladesh
- Bhutan
- Cambodia
- China
- Hong Kong
- India
- Indonesia
- Japan
- Laos
- Macao
- Maldives
- Mongolia
- Myanmar
- Nepal
- North Korea
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Sri Lanka
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Timor-Leste
- Vietnam
Questions and answers
How many R&D labs are there in Malaysia?
The 311 Institute Global R&D Labs Directory lists 37 active R&D labs in Malaysia as of October 2026: 17 government, 15 research institutes, 3 corporate, 1 military and 1 university.
Which organisations run the most R&D labs in Malaysia?
In this directory the organisations with the most labs in Malaysia are Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Government of Malaysia and Malaysia government.
Where are R&D labs concentrated in Malaysia?
They cluster around Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Bangi. The largest R&D ecosystem is Singapore.
© 311 Institute 2016–2026. This directory is the proprietary work of the 311 Institute, protected by copyright and database rights. Copying, scraping or republishing any substantial part without written permission is prohibited.