Daryl Diong started Z21 in 2019, when he was 20, with RM5,000. Today Z21 is the centre of three companies. Z21 builds online stores designed to turn visitors into buyers, Convex focuses on web optimisation, and A22A trains companies to use AI in marketing and content. Together they help brands connect with customers directly through their own websites and build a stronger presence on social media. Z21 has been profitable since its first month, with clients including Love, Bonito, Clarks and Naelofar.

Daryl Diong started Z21 in 2019, when he was 20, with RM5,000. Today Z21 is the centre of three companies. Z21 builds online stores designed to turn visitors into buyers, Convex focuses on web optimisation, and A22A trains companies to use AI in marketing and content. Together they help brands connect with customers directly through their own websites and build a stronger presence on social media. Z21 has been profitable since its first month, with clients including Love, Bonito, Clarks and Naelofar.

The flagship entrepreneurship show on BFM, featuring personal business stories from early stage start-ups, all the way to billionaire octogenarians in Malaysia and abroad. Notable guests include Martin Cooper (father of the mobile phone), Julian Assange (founder of WikiLeaks), Ralph Henry Baer (father of video games), Tony Buzan (Mindmap Guru), Isaac Tigrett (Hard Rock Cafe founder), Robert Kiyosaki (Financial Guru), Nick Vujicic (motivational speaker) and more. Tap into this valuable resource of shared experiences for the SME industry, which also touches on news, issues and trends affecting the business community and beyond.

Open For Business

Discover fresh concepts, tackle obstacles, and unleash growth - Open For Business is the dynamic show where BFM engages with entrepreneurs, business leaders, and industry trailblazers, igniting inspiration, sparking success, and exploring new business models.

Inside the Z21 Ecosystem

After nearly two decades working with international game studios including Ubisoft, EA and Unity, Alitt Khaliq returned to Malaysia to build a game development company of his own. Founded in 2024 with Brian Kim, Albrite Studios is developing its first original title, Project XII, while taking on selected development partnerships to support their growth.

Alitt joins us to discuss the business of building a game studio in Malaysia, the realities of financing and developing original game IP, and what it takes for a Malaysian studio to compete in the global PC and console market.

We discuss:


Why Alitt left established international studios to build a company in Malaysia.


The business case for developing original games rather than focusing solely on outsourced work.


What it takes to finance and bring an original game to market.


How Albrite balances original IP development with co-development projects.


The ambition to grow into a sustainable studio with a portfolio of original titles.

After nearly two decades working with international game studios including Ubisoft, EA and Unity, Alitt Khaliq returned to Malaysia to build a game development company of his own. Founded in 2024 with Brian Kim, Albrite Studios is developing its first original title, Project XII, while taking on selected development partnerships to support their growth.Alitt joins us to discuss the business of building a game studio in Malaysia, the realities of financing and developing original game IP, and what it takes for a Malaysian studio to compete in the global PC and console market.We discuss:<ul><li>Why Alitt left established international studios to build a company in Malaysia.</li><li>The business case for developing original games rather than focusing solely on outsourced work.</li><li>What it takes to finance and bring an original game to market.</li><li>How Albrite balances original IP development with co-development projects.</li><li>The ambition to grow into a sustainable studio with a portfolio of original titles.</li></ul>

From Ubisoft to Albrite: Building A Malaysian Game Studio

Malaysia’s kopitiam culture owes a great deal to the Hainanese: the kopi roasted with butter and sugar, the kaya toast, the chicken chop. But many of the old recipes and methods are being simplified, or quietly disappearing.

JJ Phun grew up in that tradition. His family’s story goes back to a 1938 coffee shop at the Kluang railway station, and in 2005 he took that heritage to the Klang Valley as Kluang Station, opening its first outlet at 1 Utama.

Now he and his brother are starting again with Arang, a modern Hainanese kopitiam they launched in 2026. It is self-funded, and they say it is already a seven-figure business in its first year.

JJ joins us to talk about turning heritage into a business, what two decades of running kopitiams has taught him, and why culture only survives when it stays commercially relevant.

Malaysia’s kopitiam culture owes a great deal to the Hainanese: the kopi roasted with butter and sugar, the kaya toast, the chicken chop. But many of the old recipes and methods are being simplified, or quietly disappearing.JJ Phun grew up in that tradition. His family’s story goes back to a 1938 coffee shop at the Kluang railway station, and in 2005 he took that heritage to the Klang Valley as Kluang Station, opening its first outlet at 1 Utama.Now he and his brother are starting again with Arang, a modern Hainanese kopitiam they launched in 2026. It is self-funded, and they say it is already a seven-figure business in its first year.JJ joins us to talk about turning heritage into a business, what two decades of running kopitiams has taught him, and why culture only survives when it stays commercially relevant.

Old School, New Brew: The Business of a Modern Hainanese Kopitiam

Everyone glamorises entrepreneurship. Jeremiah Su would rather talk about the part nobody posts: going broke, losing friends, and the loneliness of running a business with no one who really gets it.


After nearly two decades in branding and video production, including co-founding the agency Superminted, Jeremiah started The Beyond in 2022. It began as a group of business-owner friends complaining about bad clients, and has grown into a community he says has more than 800 members, built around “anti-networking”: games, live debates, karaoke and real talk, from Kuala Lumpur to Manila.


It is still bootstrapped and pre-revenue, backed by sponsors and partners, with a flagship festival, BeyondFest, returning to KL in November. Jeremiah joins us to talk about the culture of failure, whether community can become a real business, and what happens when the founder is the bottleneck.

Everyone glamorises entrepreneurship. Jeremiah Su would rather talk about the part nobody posts: going broke, losing friends, and the loneliness of running a business with no one who really gets it. After nearly two decades in branding and video production, including co-founding the agency Superminted, Jeremiah started The Beyond in 2022. It began as a group of business-owner friends complaining about bad clients, and has grown into a community he says has more than 800 members, built around “anti-networking”: games, live debates, karaoke and real talk, from Kuala Lumpur to Manila. It is still bootstrapped and pre-revenue, backed by sponsors and partners, with a flagship festival, BeyondFest, returning to KL in November. Jeremiah joins us to talk about the culture of failure, whether community can become a real business, and what happens when the founder is the bottleneck.

Inside the Z21 Ecosystem

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