On Feb 25, Malaysia launched the world's smallest microchip with radio technology (RFID) - or at least that is what it claims. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on that day unveiled a made-in-Malaysia Microchip (MM Chip), measuring 0.7mm by 0.7mm, after more than two years of research and development.

This whole effort began in 2002 when FEC Japan, which deals in RFID-related products, sent a proposal to the Malaysian government to allow Malaysia to possess its RFID technology and thereon to showcase its application globally. In 2003, the Malaysian government bought the technology and the rights to design, manufacture and market the chip from FEC.

Incidentally, a week before the MM Chip was unveiled by Abdullah, on Feb 15, Hitachi revealed the world's smallest radio frequency identification tag , measuring 0.05mm by 0.05mm which is less than one tenth of the size of the MM chip.

In fact, in 2001, Hitachi has developed then the world's smallest RFID chip measuring 0.4mm by 0.4mm. In 2003, Hitachi was able to embed an antenna within the same chip, which is exactly the technology that FEC offered to the Malaysian government. By 2006, Hitachi had developed its chip further, measuring only up to 0.15mm by 0.15mm and had commercial applications globally eg, passports, warehousing, inventory management, library systems, etc.

It appears that FEC's RFID chip technology in 2003 has been superseded by Hitachi even then. After three years, the MM Chip was only finally launched last week. Home Minister Radzi Sheikh Ahmad, who co-chairs the MM chip committee with Abdullah, said the government had spent more than US$50 million (RM175 million) on the project. However, he also added that the chip is currently being produced in Japan.

As Radzi said, the applications for MM are mind-boggling, and that is also what we think of the government spending such a huge sum of money to commercialise a five-year-old outdated technology.

And on top of that, to claim that it is the smallest microchip ever. Mind-boggling indeed.