Sometimes I wonder:
Why is it easier to explore collaboration with a company in Singapore, Turkey, Philippines, India, Canada, or Indonesia — than one right here in Malaysia?
It’s not a rhetorical question. It’s something I’ve experienced over and over again.
I’m not here to criticise — just to share what I’ve seen as someone who’s been building, pitching, and proposing IoT solutions for years.
And what I’ve learned? It’s not about geography.
It’s about mindset.
Foreign Partners Move Fast — and Think Bigger
I’ve had calls with companies from countries I’ve never even visited. Some reached out via email, LinkedIn, or a simple intro. We hopped on a video call. I shared what Favoriot does. They shared what they’re building.
And within days, they were already:
Asking for API documentation
Registering for trial accounts
Testing out integrations
Pitching bundled solutions to their clients
It wasn’t complicated.
It wasn’t territorial.
They didn’t feel the need to prove they could “build it all themselves.”
Instead, they said things like:
“This saves us six months of work.”
“Let’s plug in and go.”
“We’d rather focus on solving problems, not building infrastructure.”
That level of trust-first, execute-later mindset is refreshing. And honestly, it’s productive.
Many of them now offer our platform as part of their portfolio — sometimes under their own brand, sometimes co-branded.
It works because the relationship is clear: you do what you’re great at, we do the same, and our clients win.
Meanwhile, in Malaysia…
Here’s where things feel different.
I’ve pitched to Malaysian startups, system integrators, even well-funded tech companies. And I often hear the same things:
“We already built our own dashboard.”
“We have our own middleware.”
“We’re not looking for platform partnerships right now.”
Now, I get it — it feels good to build things yourself.
We Malaysians are capable. No question.
But here’s the problem: in trying to do everything, we often end up shipping less.
I’ve seen great local teams delay product launches because they’re still fine-tuning their platform. Or stuck trying to maintain something they weren’t supposed to own long-term.
And when you don’t collaborate, you close the door to scale.
Why Is This Happening?
Let’s unpack this a bit.
I don’t think it’s a lack of talent. In fact, Malaysia has incredible engineers and world-class developers.
The gap I see is this:
Foreign companies are used to ecosystem thinking. They see platforms as partners, not threats.
Local companies often think in ownership silos. If it’s not built internally, it’s “less valuable.”
There’s also a fear of dependence — as if using a third-party platform means losing control.
But here’s my take:
You don’t need to own the engine to build the car.
You just need to understand how it works — and make it move.
Ecosystem Thinking Is the Future
Favoriot was designed from day one to be an Application Enablement Platform (AEP).
We make it easy to:
Collect real-time data from IoT devices Process and analyse that data securely
Visualise it through dashboards
Send alerts via platforms like Telegram Integrate with external systems using REST APIs
You don’t need to rebuild this from scratch. You can start with us and focus on what makes your product unique.
And we’ve made sure our pricing, support, and deployment options suit local and international markets — from SMEs to education to enterprises.
If a company in Turkey, India, or Canada sees the value in this…
why not us?
What We Can Do Differently in Malaysia
I believe it’s time to stop thinking,
“Can we build everything ourselves?”
and start asking,
“Can we build something greater — together?”
If you’re working on smart agriculture: let’s power the backend.
If you’re running IoT workshops: use Favoriot to train your students.
If you’re a system integrator: offer IoT as a plug-and-play service.
If you’re stuck trying to build dashboards: let us do that for you.
We’re not here to take over. We’re here to make you faster.
Final Thoughts
This isn’t about blaming anyone.
It’s about reflecting on what’s working — and what’s not.
I love seeing Malaysian companies succeed. But we need to stop acting like we’re in different boats, paddling in opposite directions.
If foreign companies are willing to adopt Favoriot without hesitation, bundle it into their offering, and go to market quickly — what’s stopping us from doing the same right here?
Let’s build our IoT future as a connected ecosystem, not a series of isolated experiments.
Favoriot is open to partnerships.
Let’s co-create, co-sell, and co-succeed.
It’s time we trust each other a little more — and compete a little less.
Dr. Mazlan Abbas
CEO, Favoriot
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