Malaysia’s leading multi-brand convenience retail group has moved decisively beyond platform adoption, building AI-powered workflows directly into the operational fabric of its business, with Lark as the coordinating infrastructure that makes them run.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, May 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — myNEWS Holdings Berhad today announces the formal adoption of Lark as its organisation-wide productivity and collaboration platform, extending connectivity across headquarters, store operations, franchise partners, and joint venture partners spanning five retail brands: myNEWS, CU, SUPERVALUE, WHSmith, and Maru Coffee.

The rollout reflects a considered approach to organisational change. Rather than a single top-down directive, adoption was seeded deliberately, with early adopters and team leads building meaningful Lark Base applications woven into their own workflows before the platform was extended more broadly. Leadership and staff moved in the same direction, at a pace calibrated to let competence develop alongside confidence.

Lark’s role extended well beyond enabling communication. As the operational coordination layer, it is where automated workflows are initiated and tracked, where the right data reaches the right people, and where tasks, whether triggered by a human or an automated process, are assigned, tracked and completed.

Intelligent pipelines feed directly into Lark Base, turning what were once isolated manual processes into a connected, continuously updated workflow. A field cash reconciliation that previously meant manual form-filling now completes the moment two photographs are taken — computer vision reads both documents, extracts the relevant figures, and flags any variance automatically. Supplier invoices arriving by email are parsed by AI, validated against purchase records, and posted into the finance system. The work gets done faster, with fewer errors, and as the business grows, it is AI that scales alongside it.

Since adopting Lark three months ago, myNEWS has moved from AI-aware to increasingly AI-powered. Approximately 20% of headquarters staff now work daily with AnyGen, Lark’s built-in AI teammate, handling drafting, research, and content generation that previously consumed hours. Adoption has been self-propelling; as productivity gains became visible across teams, demand for access followed. “Lark is not just a communication platform — it is the foundation that lets us deploy AI coherently across the organisation. AnyGen gives every person access to capabilities that used to require specialist roles. We are able to scale smarter,” said Dang Tai Wen, Group CEO, myNEWS Holdings Berhad.

WHAT’S NEXT

The next phase of deployment turns attention to the frontline. Lark is being rolled out at outlet level across all five retail brands, giving store managers a consolidated platform for daily task management, shift handovers, compliance reporting, and direct communications with headquarters.

For franchise partners, Lark becomes the primary gateway to the operational knowledge and institutional support required to run a store well. Standard operating procedures, training materials, brand standards, and day-to-day guidance are migrating into a structured, searchable Wiki.

Dang Tai Wen, Group CEO, myNEWS Holdings Berhad adds:

“Lark is not where our technology story ends. It is the platform we are building the next chapter on, for our teams, our franchise partners, and the stores they run every day.”

About Mynews Holdings Berhad

Mynews Holdings Berhad is a Malaysia’s leading multi-brand convenience retail group, listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad. The group operates five retail concepts — myNEWS, CU, SUPERVALUE, WHSmith, and Maru Coffee — serving diverse consumer segments across the country. The Group operates a centralised fresh food production facility, a multi-brand customer loyalty application, and a growing franchise network for its CU brand in partnership with BGFretail of South Korea. WHSmith outlets are operated through a joint venture with WHSmith UK.

About Lark

Lark is an AI-powered enterprise collaboration suite built by ByteDance, integrating messaging, video conferencing, document collaboration, calendar management, workflow automation, and Lark Base — a no-code operational database — within a single platform. Lark serves leading organisations across Southeast Asia, with established presence across retail, F&B, logistics, and financial services.