The science, technology and innovation ministry approved RM1.06 million in funding for the National Institutes of Biotechnology Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) to develop a Covid-19 screening and monitoring tool called i-Breath in January 2022.

The tool, which was developed to measure carbon dioxide levels produced by an individual’s breath to determine whether the person has respiratory issues, was intended for both clinical and home-based testing of Covid-19 patients and those with other respiratory illnesses.

While the project’s agreement stipulated that all IP belongs to the government, two patents were filed under UTM’s name, and copyright for the Covid-19 identification algorithm was registered under the project leader.

In addition, the i-Breath device was never registered as a medical device with the Medical Device Authority.

The report also flagged the lack of clear procedures regarding prototype asset records at UTM’s research management centre and the absence of monitoring by both the ministry and UTM after the project was completed.

“As a result, the government could not commercialise the i-Breath project as the copyright was registered under an individual’s name,” it said.

An audit found that 19 of the 20 prototype units were missing from UTM’s laboratories, and only one unit was stored at the ministry. A police report was filed last October over the missing prototypes.

The audit also highlighted the absence of financial segregation in managing purchases related to prototypes, clinical trials, raw materials, and market studies, spanning 16 vouchers amounting to RM0.89 million.

The report concluded that the project’s mismanagement, missing prototypes, and misallocated intellectual property reflected broader governance and accountability weaknesses in research and development projects under the ministry and UTM.