{
  "id": 11689399,
  "title": "‘Creativity imagines, technology enables, engineering builds’: Johor makes case for creative-digital hub",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/03/creativity-imagines-technology-enables-engineering-builds-johor-makes",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-03T12:01:08.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Independent Singapore",
    "slug": "the-independent-singapore",
    "url": "https://theindependent.sg/creativity-imagines-technology-enables-engineering-builds-johor-makes-case-for-creative-digital-hub"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Johor’s investment, trade, consumer affairs and human resources committee chairman, Lee Ting Han, outlined an ambitious vision for the state’s creative economy at the KL20 @ Johor 2026 event. By acknowledging the convergence of creativity, technology, and the JS-SEZ, Lee positioned Johor to become a hub where ideas transform into intellectual property, productions reach global markets, and the creative and digital economies mutually support each other.\n\nDelivered to a gathering of industry leaders, investors, and policymakers, Lee emphasized that the creative economy should not be seen as a cultural add-on to Johor’s industrial development but as an integral component of the digital economy. The JS-SEZ, covering approximately 357,000 hectares in southern Johor, has attracted RM110 billion in investments in 2025, constituting the highest amount among Malaysian states with 85.5% within the JS-SEZ.\n\nWith the digital economy identified as the largest of the 11 promoted sectors, Lee highlighted the direct connection between the digital economy and creative industries. He questioned the potential that could be unlocked by utilizing the capabilities offered by the JS-SEZ, stating that the question to ask is: \"What do we create with that capability?\"\n\nTo illustrate the immense potential of the creative economy, Lee provided global figures. The cultural and creative industries represent a US$2.3 trillion economy, making up about 3.1% of global GDP, according to UN Trade and Development’s 2022 estimate. The creative services sector accounted for US$1.7 trillion in exports in 2024, amounting to around 20% of global services trade. Additionally, global content investment has surged from US$120 billion in 2012 to US$251 billion in 2025, with a projected US$255 billion in 2026, according to Ampere Analysis.\n\nLee argued that creativity should imagine the future, while technology enables those visions, and engineering constructs them. By fostering a strong business ecosystem and allowing society to determine what should be built, Lee contended that creativity, technology, and engineering can work in unison to scale and propel the creative and digital economies. He concluded by posing a thought-provoking question to the audience: \"What future are we imagining today that the next generation will build tomorrow?\"",
  "summary": "MALAYSIA: A speech delivered by Johor Investment, Trade, Consumer Affairs and Human Resources Committee Chairman Lee Ting Han on behalf of Menteri Besar Dato’ Onn Hafiz Ghazi and the Johor Government at KL20 @ Johor 2026 — The Orange Economy Chapter event at Iskandar Malaysia Studios has laid out an ambitious vision for the state’s creative economy. He noted that the convergence of creativity,…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}